Eruption!
by Severus Draconis Potter
Summary: Challenge on Potions and Snitches by White Tail: Natural disaster at Hogwarts. When he looked out the window all he could see was thick smoke, and the smell of burning sulfer in the air. He swallowed the fear thickly, unable to believe that something like lava had penetrated Hogwarts.
1. Chapter 1: The impossible Happens!

A/N- I know why the heck am I starting a new story. I'm sorry guys but my muse just wont let me focus on my other stories at the moment. As soon as its satiated I'm going to upload another chapter of another story. I pinky promise. Anyways this was for a Challenge on Potions and Snitches about what if a Natural Disaster were to hit Hogwarts. I decided to give my little take on it.

Chapter One: The Impossible Happens!

~*~*~*~5:00pm~*~*~*~*~

Harry screamed loudly as he looked out the window of the castle to see the red, burning liquid coming straight for them. The fear that clawed at him, had him pushing his hands over his mouth in horror at what he was witnessing. This couldn't be true could it? His mind was playing tricks on him right? Even as he thought it, he knew it wasn't the truth. He could see the steam rising up from the intense heat on the ground, and he could swear that he could literally hear it. Coming down the mountain towards the castle was a steady flow of what looked like red water. But he had remembered studying this when he had been in muggle primary school. No one had told him when he came into the magical world that this was common.

His arms unconsciously hugged himself, his eyes going wide as they took in the scene in front of him. The fire was consuming everything it passed, he could see Hagrid's hut from where he was and the lava demolished it within seconds. He only hoped that the friendly half giant hadn't been in there. He refused to let himself think otherwise, as he knew now was certainly not the time to panic. He turned around to see that all the students behind him were now drawn to the window as he was.

He could see just down below that there were students coming back from Quidditch practice, it wasn't Gryffindor, otherwise Harry would have been down there. He could see green on their robes, so he knew they were Slytherins, but that didn't matter to him right now. Now that he was looking he could see a bit of blue, so there was some Ravenclaws as well. Didn't they see the lava right behind them? Didn't they know what kind of danger they were in? He had barely pulled up the window when he heard a scream come from below.

"Run! Get to the Castle hurry!" He screamed at them, who were looking at the scene behind them stupidly. He knew it was probably the fear that had them frozen in shock, but unless they wanted to live they had to move. He knew that and so did his classmates around him as he could hear their terrified screams joining his. His heart skipped a beat when it seemed like the straggler of the group was going to be engulfed in the lava, but the boy suddenly took to the air on his broom, heading towards the group.

The others followed suit, and Harry was breathing a sigh of relief, until he saw something. One of the boys had flown back down to grab something they had dropped and had got too close to the lava, and they could see how hot it was as he was screaming and it wasn't even touching him. His broom started to catch on fire and Harry gasped before he pushed himself away from the window. He couldn't see this, nor did he want too. He screwed his eyes tight as the screams of the boy mixed with the ones of his peers around him.

Soon enough though the boy stopped screaming, but Harry didn't look. He wanted to know if he had made it, or what happened but he couldn't make his voice work. He noticed now that some of the students were starting to cough as the air in the castle got thick with the gases coming from the lava.

"Close the windows!" Ron yelled, taking the words right out of Harry's mouth, and each person hurriedly complied to his words, all on autopilot for the most part.

They hadn't realized the extent of what they had been hearing from their teachers. Not until Harry himself had screamed and he found amidst all the pandemonium that was going on around him that couldn't wrap his head around it. Was this really the end? Is this how he was destined to die? Surely this couldn't be all it took right? Something in him started to break, if this was the end then where did Voldemort really fit in this? And what the heck was that whole thing about Sirius Black? If it wasn't one thing it was the other. He swallowed thickly as the lava got closer to the castle, it really was going to end like this, wasn't it?

He couldn't stay here, it was like he waiting his impending death, he was the boy who lived for a reason right? At the moment, he still didn't know why but that was but he knew that it didn't mean much at the moment. He needed to find his friends, and they had to get the hell out of here. He had a hunch that the castle wasn't going to protect them much longer like he had originally thought. Without a second glance back through the window Harry took off for his Tower as fast as he could to get his cloak and his map and his photo album. He couldn't bare the thought of something happening to his most precious items.

As he ran he became aware that the hallways were a bit devoid of noise and he had to wonder where everyone was. He didn't know that the students he had been with a couple minutes before along with the rest of the student population were being evacuated from their teacher's office via floo as fast as they could; nor the skepticism of the teachers that they wouldn't get all of the children out in time. Harry gave the password to his tower and opened it, a gasp escaping him as he realized that no one was here it seemed. He had been running downstairs after grabbing his small pack with his beloved treasures in it from his dorm, when he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.

He could see from the steps that the lava was at the entrance door, and quite suddenly he could smell it. That alone had him coughing as he struggled to remember the charm Snape of all people had taught them in a potions a few weeks ago. He could see smoke rising on the outside of the window and he suddenly felt extremely alone, but that was nothing how he felt when the lights suddenly went out and all was black.

A scream resounded in the darkness, one that wasn't his own so he had a moment of relief that he wasn't as alone as he thought. Though that relief was short lived as he heard what sounded like grinding noise from Hogwarts herself, he had to wonder how they hadn't seen this coming; when today had been the perfect day.

~*~*~*~*~*~!2:00pm, just after lunch time*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The day had started fairly normal for a January, the weather had been mild. The snow had all gone, and they had even had some sunshine; making it seem warmer then what it really was. Harry sighed happily as they sat around Hagrid in their Care of Magical creatures class. The half giant was in the middle of lecturing about the Runspoor he had caught earlier that week. Surprisingly the Slytherins hadn't made a single disruptive noise this entire time and Harry had to wonder why. Harry knew that he would probably be called up to the front of the class, because of his ability to speak with the reptiles; so maybe that was it. And really regardless of what everyone else thought of it, he truly liked his ability.

He knew that most of the students were probably jealous, or scared of what it represented but he didn't care. He also knew that Draco Malfoy would kill for this ability, the prat. He shook his head as he focused back on his lesson. The weather was perfect and once more it seemed that his attention was drifting to the sky. He wished they could do another lesson with the Hippogriff but after that stunt Draco pulled, he knew that was next to impossible. Harry shook his head, he only wanted to feel free. It had only been a few days since they had all come back to school. He had been forced to spend his winter holidays with the Durselys.

All because of Sirius Black attempting to get into the Gryffindor house, the Headmaster had deemed the Castle unsafe and wanted to up its wards. And apparently the only way to do that was to have all the children gone so their magic wouldn't get in the way. Harry had thought it was a good idea, until he realized that he had to go back to his so called family. He sighed as he carefully lifted up his the sleeve on his cloak. He knew that the majority of his classmates were wondering why he was the only one who still had his on. He knew if one of them still had one of theirs on he would look at them crazy as well. The sun was practically beaming on them, and he could feel the sweat on his head as he wiped his brow.

He knew why he couldn't take it off, he had hand shaped bruising all over his arms from where his Uncle had constantly grabbed him in his anger. And he could just imagine the looks of disgust he would get, not to mention some horror if someone were to see. You would have to be blind not to realize what they were and what they were caused by. And he knew that this would probably reach the teachers and he had no plans to let his most kept secret ousted over something stupid.

It seemed that the Durselys hadn't been thrilled with his unfortunate holiday plans and Vernon of course took it out on him. He sighed once more, wishing for once that someone would look just a little bit closer. He almost let himself get lost in thought before he was shaking his head; and pushing the thoughts away. He couldn't afford to think on that, he knew even though he was a wizard that wishes still had no meaning; especially ones like that. He had just turned back to the lesson when he heard it.

It started off like a low grumbling as if someone was extremely hungry, but then the noise got louder. He looked around his classmates to see that they all quieted and were staring around at one another in silence. Harry found himself standing up as the noise seemed to engulfed them, and then the ground started shaking. His first thought was that this was an earthquake, but he knew somehow that whatever this was; it was bigger then that.

He looked around to see the horror etched on each and every face as they all tried to figure out what the hell was going on around them when they heard this loud hiss. It would have been comical if one had seen it, as every single head turned as one to face the source of the noise. Harry found his mouth dropping open wide as he turned, to see what looked like smoke coming from a mountain not to far from them. He frowned for a moment, looking immediately to Hermione who seemed to be trying to figure out just what the heck was going on as well when he nearly jumped out of his skin.

He had been about to ask her what she thought might be happening when suddenly a loud boom resounded in the air. A few kids screamed, Harry being one of them and years of Dursely training had him hitting the dirt. Which was good in this case actually as rocks seemed to be raining from up above. He instinctively covered his head as he heard more kids screaming as they got hit by them. He was afraid to look up because of the thumps that were coming from the rocks let him know that they weren't small ones like they tended to throw at one another.

"Everyone get out of here! Get up and run!" Hagrid yelled, his voice sound hazy to Harry's ears.

He wasn't fully sure why he couldn't hear as great as he usually could, unaware that the blast had probably popped his eardrums from how close he was too. He scrambled to his feet, looking around in shock as he noticed that he was probably one of the lucky ones. He could see a bloody Neville being levitated by Hermione and he saw a few more students following her lead to pick up their fallen classmates. Harry reached for Ron who seemed to be looking around in the same daze he was before taking his hand and running as fast as they could away from the clearing. He could hear the grumbling sound again, and he knew now that whatever it was, it wasn't good.

Harry was only looking forward, knowing that turning around could mean anything was behind him, and he hated to fall in this situation. His heart was pounding in his chest and stopped for a split second as a second boom sounded the air. He could hear the steady feet behind him so he knew that his classmates were running. He hoped Hagrid had gotten everyone out of there. He could see the castle coming into view but he still didn't slow down, if anything he went faster especially when he smelled it.

It smelled like sulfur and he had a hunch that something was burning somewhere. As soon as he had the thought he the final boom echoed in the air and this time he found himself stopping to look behind them to see what it was. He gasped on his breath as he saw the thick red liquid coming out what he thought was a just a plain ole mountain. He had remembered seeing a documentary on this when he had been in primary school. He even had to build one out of paper mache, and then present it to his class. Of course Dudley had smashed his and he had gotten an F on the assignment but nonetheless he had never forgotten what it was.

"Oh Merlin," he breathed out as he saw the eruption. "This can't be real,"

"What is it Harry?" Ron panted out as he looked at the erupting mountain.

"Don't you know what's happening Ron?" He asked, horror filling his body, like a rush of cold water even more so. If they were this close to it, didn't that put them and everything and everyone else they knew in danger? They had to tell someone about this!

"No I don't, what is it?" Ron asked. He knew what natural disasters were of course, but they weren't covered like they were in the muggle schools, because magical beings tended to have more things to worry about then Mother Nature.

"A Volcano, we have to tell Dumbledore," Harry told him anxiously before he started back running towards the castle.

It took Ron a moment to fully grasp what his mate had just said to him, but when his mind had processed it, he nearly choked on air. "Bloody hell," he breathed under his breath before he took off after Harry. They had to warn everyone, he knew that once the lava decided to move, there would be nothing to stop it, it could and would destroy everything in its path.


	2. Chapter 2: A Warning Ignored

A/N- I got no reviews at all last chapter so I'm hesitant to even post this one. I always disliked that when Authors said they won't post if they dont get a certain number of reviews but I see their point. I'm not going to do it, but my updates will be slow. And considering I'm already on Chapter 5 I can post more if I truly wanted to. Clearly it wasnt liked as well as I thought.

**Chapter Two: A Warning Ignored**

Harry ran as fast as he could, towards the castle with Ron's footsteps not a second behind him and was rewarded when their efforts had paid off. They ended up in front of the entrance doors. He turned around to see if he could still see the burning mountain, but he couldn't. No matter, they know what they saw. Running inside the castle, he could see Hagrid up ahead, telling everyone who had been outside to head to the infirmary. Harry froze on the inside for a moment, before realizing that he didn't even have a scratch on him so there would be no need for Pomprey to even check on him. Plus he knew he would want to see how his friends and classmates were.

"I hope Neville is okay," Harry panted as they headed up the stairs.

"He is, you know how Madame Pomprey can be. Harry how are you tired, shouldn't you be used to this running from Quidditch practice?" Ron asked in confusion.

"Ron we just ran for our lives, of course I'm a little winded. Not to mention I still have my cloak on," Harry replied defensively. He kept to himself that the reason he was winded had nothing really to do with the run. The severe bruising on his chest from his Uncle's boot had assured him that he probably had one or two cracked or broken ribs and it hurt to breathe let alone run.

"Sorry Harry, I know my heart is just now starting to slow down," Ron replied apologetically.

"I hope everyone is okay," Harry muttered; changing the subject as they neared the the doors of the infirmary.

"They are, you'll see," Ron promised as they entered the infirmary.

Harry looked around and he could see that despite his earlier concerns that everyone for the most part was calm. Then again it could be to the fact that there was a tray of empty potion's vial in the middle of the room and he had to wonder how many of his peers had a calming draught rushing through their system. He made his way over to Neville's bed to see his dorm mate asleep, with a white bandage over his head.

"He's going to be fine, Mr. Potter, but I need to check on both you and Mr. Weasley. And then I need you both to tell me your version of what happened, because the tales I've been hearing are pretty farfetched," Poppy replied tiredly as she took out her wand.

"Ron can go first, I think some debris might have hit him on our run back," Harry said pushing his best mate forward.

"Oy! No it didn't Harry, I'm fine," Ron replied in disbelief as Harry turned on him like that. He sighed as the matron fussed over him and got him into a bed.

"Survival of the fittest Ron," Harry murmured as he moved back a bit.

As soon as the coast was clear, he was planning on making a break for it. He knew she couldn't see the bruises on his body, she would scan and then she would know. He couldn't stand the disappointed look he would see on the Headmaster's face as Harry was just so sure that he knew what his relatives were doing him. He sighed shaking the horrible thoughts away as he stared at his mate getting fussed over. He was carefully making his way to towards the door, slowly and quietly. He didn't want to disturb anyone and have them rat him out. He had barely opened the door when he found his path blocked off by a familiar pair of black boots.

"Move out of my way Potter," Severus told him in annoyance. He had been called because he had gotten word that his third year Slytherins had gotten hurt in their Care of Magical creatures class. He liked the half Giant, but he didn't think he was fit to be a teacher and this incident along with the one with his Hippogriff proved it.

"Sorry sir, I was just leaving," Harry replied quietly trying to press himself up against the wall. This man in front of him was so unpredictable it seemed. If the man suddenly started ignoring him he had no problems with that and wouldn't question it in the slightest.

Severus's eyes narrowed as he looked at the Gryffindor suspiciously. "And why are you in such a rush to leave the infirmary Potter?" He asked casually, taking the way the small boy turned to look around in hopes that Poppy hadn't heard.

"Because I need to see the Headmaster, and I'm fine," Harry replied still inching his way out the door.

"Oh of course, Prince Potter is now a healer and doesn't need anyone beneath him to look him over," Severus stated sarcastically; attracting the attention of Poppy.

"No its not that. I was not hurt by the falling rocks," Harry replied honestly.

"You're not going anywhere young man, you know that I still have to look you over," Poppy replied briskly as she finished up with Ron.

Harry swallowed thickly as he looked from both the matron and Snape. He couldn't do this, not when he knew the minute she scanned him, his bruises would be on display for Snape to see. The man he knew would use this against him and he couldn't allow it to happen. He didn't see any way that he was getting away from getting checked, so he did the only thing that he could do in that moment. He ran.

Severus swore softly as Potter took off, the insolent brat. He frowned before he found himself taking off after him. If something turned out to be wrong with him that Poppy hadn't had a chance to fix, Albus would have their heads. Never mind if it was the boy's fault, he was only 13 and still a child. He could see the child up ahead slowing down and holding onto his side like it hurt. He had the hunch that Potter thought he had gotten away and probably wasn't faking this injury. He didn't understand if the boy was hurt, why he didn't just let himself get healed. That question sent some flags up in his head. Why the would boy rather hide then get healed? What was so important then his health that he would risk it? He waited until the child had fully stopped before he quickened his own pace. He was nearly too him when he stepped on a rock that seemingly appeared out of nowhere and the noise attracted the attention of the resting child who turned to look at him in horror. Severus reacted quickly as did the boy who quickly took off once more. But he had been expecting it and add to the fact that he was sure the child was hurt, he found himself easily keeping pace with him.

"Potter! Stop it you idiot child," Severus called out.

"Leave me alone!" Harry gasped out, his side throbbing painfully.

Severus frowned as he sped up. "I don't think so," he replied darkly as he grabbed the boy's shoulder who screamed as if he had hurt him. It startled him but not enough to let go; he did however pull him into an empty classroom. Where he had it locked and warded within a few seconds as he stared at the boy who had somehow fallen to the floor and was now curled up into a ball. He was a bit alarmed at the defensive position but he would get his answers sooner or later.

"Stand up Potter, I'm not going to hurt you," Severus told him firmly.

Harry quickly got to his feet at the tone, his body tensed as if he was prepared for flight. The only problem was that he had nowhere to run as Snape had warded the door.

"Care to explain why you are running away from being healed? Do you like being hurt? Did you think it would gain you a few sympathy cards?" Severus asked quietly as he leaned against the old desk. He crossed his arms threateningly as he stared at the boy.

Harry was terrified, nothing could compare he didn't think. Not the fact that he still hadn't told anyone what he and Ron had seen, nor when the Basilisk had been about to kill him last year. He was beyond freaked out, because he was sure that no one even realized where he was. Except for Poppy and she was only worried that he had been hurt some how.

"You better answer me Potter, or I'll make you," Severus warned him quietly.

"I'm not hurt sir," Harry lied weakly.

"So the little stunt where you were holding your side when you thought no one was watching you was for naught? Who do you take me for boy? I know you are hurt, and since you don't want Poppy to see for some odd reason I will see for myself," Severus told him as he pointed his wand to him.

Harry shut his eyes, knowing what was coming. Though he figured that Snape might hurt him if anything else, so he was surprised when he opened it to find the man looking at him with a bewildered expression on his face. Harry turned to see a parchment appear out of thin air writing whatever Snape was doing. The blood drained from his face as he became aware of just what scan the man had done and he quickly sat up.

"I can explain, I fell. And then the rocks landed one me," Harry lied quickly.

"Hush, Potter I know you are lying to me. These injures are about a week old, now I have a question and you will tell me the truth. Who did this too you?" Severus asked tightly. He didn't tolerate abuse and though he itching to see the extent of the boy's injuries, he knew how Potter was. Hell he knew how he was. It also didn't help that his perceptions on the child in front of him were changing quite rapidly and he wasn't sure how he felt about them.

"No one, I fell like I said," Harry repeated insistently.

Severus narrowed his eyes as he took in the fearful stance of the child across from him. Just to prove a small theory he took a step towards the child only to see him unconsciously take a step back. He continued to do it, until the boy was backed up against the wall.

"Sir, what are you doing?" Harry asked fearfully, the wall was digging painfully into his back from how hard he had himself pressed against it..

Severus didn't reply as he lifted up his hand to run through his hair. He was rewarded when Potter violently flinched back, knocking his head on the wall. He sighed as he looked at the terrified child in front of him.

"Take off your cloak," he told him quietly.

"Why?" Harry asked in a horrified tone.

"I need to see your injuries," Severus told him curtly.

"No you don't, you did a scan," Harry pointed out softly.

"The scan shows me what's ailing you but not how severe it is," Severus explained matter of factly.

Harry sighed as he stared at his Professor, knowing that he wasn't getting out of this. Well no matter he didn't have to talk about it. His teacher could make his assumptions but he would neither deny nor accept what he was asked. He was not about to spill this horrible secret to Snape a slimy Slytherin of all things. He took a breath before he tugged off his cloak, letting it fall to the floor. He could see himself in the room that the bruising was rather dark on his pale skin, and would have gotten lost in thought if he hadn't heard a sudden intake of breath. He flinched suddenly as Snape carefully grabbed his arm.

"What are you doing?" Harry breathed out, his eyes never leaving the pale hand of his potion's masters.

"Trying to see something," Severus replied as he wrapped his hands around the child's arm. He could see the pattern matched his almost, only the print was a bit bigger and rounder and he frowned. He didn't like this one bit, and the fact that someone had dared to do hurt Lily's son was too much for him.

"What are you trying to see?" Harry asked, a bit of curiosity in his tone, despite their current subject.

"Just what I thought, its a male," Severus said speaking quietly to himself.

"What's a male?" Harry asked, his heart beating painfully fast as he tried to process what the hell had just happened.

"Your abuser," Severus stated calmly.

"I'm, I'm not abused," Harry repeated softly, suddenly feeling sick to his stomach.

"You are," he replied quietly.

Harry swallowed thickly. "You can't prove anything," he said unknowingly proving everything that his teacher had stated as true.

"You live with your Aunt and Uncle, so I'm going to assume that your Uncle is the one who did this too you. Unless you tell me otherwise," Severus continued as if Harry hadn't spoke. He did move to give the boy a bit of room as he paced for a moment.

Harry gasped quietly as he stared at the man unseeingly. What was going on? Was this really Snape? He turned away from the man who was now standing back to standing by the desk. If the man thought that he was just going to confess his darkest secret to him he had another thing coming. He knew that Snape would use this as ammo against him in the future. He turned to look at the window trying to distract himself when he nearly choked on another breath of air.

He could see the mountain earlier that he and Ron had assumed to be a volcano and from this angle he saw that the lava was starting to pour out from the sides. He wasn't really worried as they were inside the castle and he figured the wards and protective measure would protect the students. He sighed as he rested his head against the window pane tiredly, he didn't have much fight left in him and all he wanted to do was rest. Harry turned around to face his teacher only to find the man looking out the window with a pensive expression.

"What is it sir?" Harry asked after a moment had gone by and Snape had yet to speak.

"What do you see outside the window Potter?" Severus asked instead just to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.

"A volcano with lava pouring out the sides. But we have nothing to worry about because Hogwarts is safe right?" The third year asked softly, he needed his fears abated for the moment, as he looked at his teacher for conformation.

"Yes that's right. But regardless, I don't want to catch you outside at all today. It's not safe, I'm not sure its actually safe where we are now. I have to get to Albus immediately," Severus replied, though towards the end it was clear to Harry that the man was talking to himself once more. He knew himself that Hogwarts was protected against magical means, but he wasn't sure about anything natural. Mainly because incidents like these were so few in between in the wizarding world, unlike the muggle one.

Harry sighed, but he wasn't stupid he didn't want to get burned. He was planning on staying inside as well. "Yes sir," he answered just to show that he was listening.

"Go back to the infirmary, make no mistake that I will find out if you don't," Severus warned him as he made his way towards the door. "We will discuss my findings about your home life at a later time. I will get to the bottom of this Potter, make no mistake about that."

Harry swallowed as he stared at the potion's master. He was just going to have to risk the man's ire, though truthfully he hoped that Snape would be to busy to remember what he was supposed to do. Because the truth of the matter was he wasn't going back to that sterile place, if anything he was going to his tower to try to get a bit rest in. He didn't have to worry about telling the Headmaster since he was sure that Snape would do it for him.

~*~*~*Gryffindor Tower 5:30pm~*~*~*~*~

Harry pulled out his wand quickly after tightening the straps on his backpack. He didn't want to even risk his pack coming loose or something. He looked around in the dark for a moment before he got his terrified brain to work.

"L-l-lumos," he whispered out softly, his voice shaking in his fear. He was relieved when the wand lit up, gaining him a bit of light around his common room. He walked slowly, having heard the scream coming from the girl's side of the room. "Is anyone there?" He asked, unconsciously raising his voice so they could hear him. He held his breath so he could hear them, the pounding of his heart feeling extremely loud in the empty room.

"Yes I'm here," a timid voice replied.

"Where are you?" Harry replied looking around slowly.

"Here," she replied as she stood up from where she had been hidden behind the one of the couches.

Harry walked towards her, his wand illuminating enough so he could see if he recognized who she was. He knew of her, but had never hung out with her. I mean why would he? The girl who he remembered to be Amanda Flint had garnered a lot of grief for being in Gryffindor Tower instead of in Slytherin with her older brother. Harry hadn't really cared, as she was nothing like her troll looking Marcus. Not to mention she was a first year; and hadn't had many opportunities to talk with her.

"What were you doing?" Harry asked her curiously.

"Hiding, I was scared. Hogwarts has been making weird noises for the past hour or so," she admitted shyly as she looked at the boy next to her. She wasn't dense; she knew exactly who he was. Personally she steered clear of him and his friends, but right now she was glad that it was Harry who had found her. He always seemed like he was a nice person, and already she wasn't feeling so alone.

"That's because something's wrong," Harry replied carefully as he looked at her to gauge her reaction. The last thing he needed was a hysterical girl on his hands because he didn't think he would be able to keep himself calm either. He held his hand out to her silently, and was grateful when she grabbed it without question.

"We need to get out of here," he told her softly. Something had changed in the atmosphere and he felt like speaking too loudly could cause problems in the long run so why risk themselves.

"And go where? Won't it be safer up here, then outside?" Amanda asked fearfully.

"I don't think so, we need to find a Professor first," Harry told her truthfully. He didn't want to admit to her that he had no intention of going outside. At this point he wasn't about to admit even to himself that he felt that Snape scared him more then the Lava did. After making sure that she could preform the Lumos charm, they slowly made their way out of their Tower and into the dark corridors. As they headed down the steps they had no idea that the Lava was starting to make its way up.


	3. Chapter 3: Hogwarts will protect us righ

**A/N- I'm not going to respond to the flames or sarcastic reviews. Most people are lazy when it comes to reviewing(I know I am!) But I make a point to review at least one chapter in a story, just so they know you liked it. I'm not going to stop writing this story, and I'm not sure how long it it'll be, but updates for this will be extremely slow until I get some motivation. The story is fast paced and once it gets going good luck staying on track. Its supposed to feel chaotic and confusing because thats how they are feeling.**

Chapter Three: Hogwarts will Protect us right?

Severus strode from the room as if he was on a mission, because in all honesty he was. He was still thinking about what he had just seen, what the mountain had turned into. He knew logically that a mountain didn't just turn into a volcano and though he wanted to doubt that Potter was lying, he just couldn't. He knew with his own eyes what he had seen. Like Harry, he had seen a muggle program on Volcano's when he was a child, and the consequences of ignoring one could be devastating. He wasn't sure how far the lava would flow, nor how long it would last.

He knew besides the burning liquid, that they had the gas to watch for. Just breathing it in could be deadly. He took a look out the window that he passed, and he could see smoke rising in the air from where the mountain was. He shook his head as he hurried to the Headmaster's office, knowing the man had to be aware of this. He knew they needed to take protective measures, like getting the students out of here and to safety.

That was one thing he hadn't been able to reassure Potter about. He didn't think that the wards around the castle, protected against anything that mother nature could throw at them. It wasn't stupidity or neglect, it was just these kinds of things just don't happen here. Especially since they were all focused on the dementors and Sirius Black and Voldemort for a little thing like nature to stand in their way.

He found himself in front of the Headmaster's office, unsure how he got here so fast but nonetheless grateful as he stood there trying to remember the man's bloody password. He wasn't even trying to guess, there would be no point there was just to many sweets in the world. He swallowed before giving the password that Albus had given to each teacher only to be used in an emergency which is what this was. The guardian moved and he stepped on the moving staircase and hurried up it. Before he could knock he was being told to enter it, which he did, but he was too keyed up to take a seat.

"What is it Severus? Is it one of the children?" Albus asked immediately when he took in the expression the Potion's master face.

"No everyone is fine for the most part. The third year Care of Magical Creature's Class had an incident in class today," he told him swiftly.

"Oh, what happened this time?" Albus asked tiredly.

"Nothing of Hagrid's fault I can assure you. There were rocks, raining down on the children. A few were hit but all of them have gone to the infirmary to be patched up," Severus explained.

"What caused that? Do you know?" Albus asked frowning as he looked at his window. He could see a smoke cloud rising just pass the forest and wondered on earth what it was.

"I have a theory, but I'm do not know for sure. Which is why I am reluctant to tell you," Severus replied carefully.

Albus waited patiently for Severus to gather his thoughts together. Inwardly though he was getting worried, because the man had never been this flustered about anything. Severus was a man that was always put together no matter what. It took something big for him to become unhinged. The fact that it apparently had to do with Hogwarts had him worried, not for his sake but of his students.

~*~*~*Abandoned Classroom 1:30pm~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Harry hadn't made it back to his tower, he simply had conjured a blanket from a piece of paper and after doing the same to a quill to make a pillow he had laid down on the floor behind the desk. He knew if he went back to the Tower that Ron would be yelling at him for throwing him to Poppy and he was just so tired and sore. He didn't want to deal with anything but sleep for right now. He knew he wouldn't be bothered and he wasn't worried about the volcano since Snape was going to tell the Headmaster which is why he soon succumbed to his exhaustion and fell asleep.

~*~*~*~*~*Dumbledore's Office 3:00pm~*~*~*~*~*~*

By the time Severus had finished telling the old man all he knew he was feeling pretty exhausted and found to his shock that 2 hours had gone by. He frowned as he looked at the clock on the man's desk. It read 3:00pm, but looking outside, you would think it was around 6:00pm with the way the sky had darkened with the smoke. He stood up quickly, and out of curiosity and a bit of stupidity (which he refused to even admit to himself) had him opening one of Albus's windows and stuck his head out. The strong smell of the burning gas had his eyes burning within seconds, and him choking before he could think. He could feel Albus pulling him back into the office and shutting the window loudly.

"We have to get the children out of here," Severus gasped out before reaching for the glass of water that had appeared next to him.

"I know, Hogwarts wasn't designed to protect us against this. I'm afraid that the castle won't stand a chance if the lava reaches us," Albus told him quietly.

"What do you mean if, I think the question is when," Severus told him hoarsely before he sipped his water. "We need to keep calm, and tell the other teachers first. We don't want the student's panicking," he replied remembering Potter's expression when he had revealed what he thought it to be. He shook the thought away, wondering why he kept thinking of the child. All he knew was that the boy had better have visited Poppy. With the way the situation was going, they were all going to need to be in full strength. This was something big, and he didn't want to lose anyone.

"I'll start alerting the teachers, whoever is in their classroom or offices. If you see anyone on your way, you know what to do," Albus told him as he hurried over to the fireplace.

Severus nodded before he left the man's office, to warn his fellow teachers of the impending danger. He still wasn't sure how much time was left, but he had the sense to know that it wouldn't be long. And the safest place for them all to be was far away from here as possible.

~*~*~*~*3:30pm~*~*~*~*~*~*

Harry wasn't sure when he awoke up, until he heard his stomach growling quite loudly and then he knew. It wasn't unusual as he had skipped lunch earlier; he had still been full from his small breakfast. It always took him a good month or so to get used to having normal portions sizes of food. Since at the Durselys, he barely got enough to live off of. He knew it was a bit early for dinner but he also knew that if he saw one of the twins they would get a snack for him. He stretched and looked out the window, before quickly checking his watch. He couldn't understand why it looked so dark when it wasn't even close too 5'clock yet.

He shook the sleepiness off of him, hoping he wouldn't get in trouble for missing a class. He made his way out the abandoned classroom and walked through the halls. He double checked that his cloak was securely on him as he found himself following the students that all seemed to be going to the Great Hall. As he entered it he could see that dinner was ready and he frowned. Maybe everyone else was confused too. He wasn't about to ask though, and quickly found his seat next to Ron who was stuffing his face.

"Hey Ron," Harry murmured as he looked around at the assortment of food on the table.

"Harry, where have you been?" Hermione said from where she was looking at him in concern.

"I was around," Harry said carefully.

"Around where? No one's seen you since class. We thought something had happened to you," Hermione told him worriedly.

"Oh, sorry. I went to the infirmary and then I was tired so I took a nap," Harry told him them honestly.

"Did he ever? I've never seen Madame Pomprey that angry. Not to mention Snape, the way he took after you Harry, I thought he was going to kill you," Ron exclaimed.

"What happened? Why was Snape chasing Harry?" Hermione asked wide eyed as she looked at her friends.

Harry shrugged embarrassingly, he didn't want to get into this. "Uhm, look the Headmaster is about to get up," he said hurriedly as indeed the old man was standing as if preparing to say something.

As he knew she would, Hermione along with everyone at their table turned to look towards the head table as the Headmaster stood up.

"Attention students, I know some of you are wondering about what is going on. And just why we are eating so early, which I will explain to you in a moment. I just need you all not to panic because Hogwarts has always been the safest place in the magical world and I will do everything in my power to make sure that it stays that way," Albus told him carefully.

Harry stiffened as he looked at his peers all around them, everyone had started talking the minute the man stood up, but then they had silenced when they heard the weight of his words. The funny part was they didn't even know what was wrong. He shook his head as he looked at Ron before he turned back towards the front.

"In the past few hours, I have been getting reports about a mountain a few kilometers from here, that isn't what its supposed to be. In other words an active Volcano. I don't think I need to explain to anyone what this is, and if you truly do not know then ask someone in your house and I'm sure they will tell you," Albus replied gravely.

"What the headmaster is trying to tell you, is that there is no need to panic. Because as long as you stay inside the castle walls, nothing can harm you," Severus said in his quiet voice. There was no need to raise his voice as the Great hall had completely gone silent.

"There is no need to panic, but if anyone feels like they cannot handle it just make your way to the infirmary," Poppy said as she too stood up and did a small look around the Great hall as a few students actually stood up. She nodded to her colleagues before she headed towards them, gesturing for them to follow her.

Harry, along with nearly everyone else watched her and those students leave out the Great Hall before returning their gazes to the Headmaster. He could see the worry in those twinkling blue eyes from where he was sitting, and that had him frowning. But that was nothing compared to when his eyes and Snape's connected. He had the sudden thought about him not visiting the infirmary, and what the man had in store for him if he found out.

Harry swallowed thickly, as the minute that thought had crossed his mind, his potion's master's eyes narrowed as if he had read his very mind. He was unable to break eye contact for a moment as the dark gaze bore into his emerald ones. He was only released from the compelling gaze when the man crooked his finger, in the universal signal for 'come here'. But Harry was doing anything but, he looked at his barely eaten food before grabbing two apples and standing up.

"Harry where are you going?" Ron asked, looking at his mate in surprise as he stood up.

"I need to go to the infirmary, remember I didn't get to see Madame Pomprey?" Harry told him, even though he had no intention of going.

"Oh yeah, if I were you I'd hurry, she was a right state when you ran out," Ron told him, before shuddering at the remembrance. It wasn't even he the Matron had been annoyed at but his blistering ears along with who ever else was still awake and coherent had heard it.

Harry grimaced before he nodded, tucking the two apples into his cloak pocket he hurried out the Great Hall, very much aware of the penetrating gaze on his back. His plan was to stay as far away from Snape as possible. He headed up the stairs, wanting to see if he could see the volcano again as he was sure since the Headmaster had said it he had nothing to worry about. But as Harry along with everyone in school would find out; that just because one man said one thing, didn't make it right. Especially when it came to Mother Nature.

Back in the Great Hall, Severus was silently seething, how dare that insolent obey his direct order. And then the little brat had the gall to run out of the hall when he had explicitly beckoned him to come to the front. The minute he saw that Potter brat, he would take him to the infirmary himself, but for the moment he needed to reassure his Slytherins who were looking up to him that everything was okay. He stood up and walked over to his snakes to find every single eye looking up at him.

After spelling a privacy charm as he what he had to say to his snakes was between them and him and no one else. He didn't need them getting embarrassed if they forgot themselves, as he was reluctant to return them to their quarters. Slytherin Tower was in the Dungeons so if the lava made its way back Hogwarts gates, his snakes would have the least chance of survival unless they were all ready to fly themselves out and he wouldn't jeopardize their life.

"I know some of you are hoping what the Headmaster had to say was a joke, but I can promise you that I have seen the volcano with my own eyes. And I know you snakes won't doubt my words as I have never lied to you. If you wish to go home, you can come with me to my office and you can floo from there," Severus told them.

"Professor, won't Hogwarts protect us from it?" Draco Malfoy asked softly, unaware that Harry Potter himself had voiced that same question a few hours ago.

Severus believed in telling his snakes the truth, and as he had just spoken he had never lied to them. They didn't take too kindly to being lied too as they were already distrustful when they came to school. He had gained their trust, and he didn't want to lose it. But on the other he didn't want to frighten his younger years, as he could see his first and second and third years tremble a bit in their seats. He was so happy once more that he didn't have to explain this to the Hufflepuffs as they were already crying. He shook the thought away as he thought how to answer the boys' question.

"I can't know for sure, Hogwarts is a magical castle and it protects us from magical things that wish to hurt us. I don't think when the wards were created that they added ones that will protect us against Natural things. I could ask the Headmaster to be certain, but as Hogwarts has been known to surprise us, I cannot say," he replied carefully.

He could see his snakes break apart his words, as if trying to find the underlying message, but this time there wasn't any. He sighed as quite a few of his older years stood up, wanting to go home. They understood the gravity of the situation. He nodded to them, telling them to wait by his office door and he would be there in a bit. He noted absently that one of his 7th years hesitated a bit as he got out of his seat like he wanted to leave but something was stopping him.

"Marcus what is it?" He asked, as they were still under the privacy charm; which didn't dispel until you had cleared the Slytherin table. Not that it really mattered as every table in there had their own silencing charm around them as well.

"My sister Amanda, she's a first year. I want her to come home too, my mum would kill me if something happened to her," Marcus told him honestly as he looked to the Gryffindor table. He looked down and towards the first years trying to spot the girl.

Severus nodded, he understood that as, Marcus wasn't the only one who was getting their younger sibling out of here. "You can go get her, Minerva won't mind," Severus told him.

"She's not there," Marcus told him quietly, feeling a bit worried. "What if she went outside?" He asked, panicking a bit inside.

"Relax Marcus, she doesn't have an outside class today and she knows first years aren't allowed outside alone. If anything she probably took a nap," Severus told him quietly. "Calm yourself,"

Marcus nodded before baring his teeth as he looked at the Weasely twins. He glared at them angrily before turning back to his teacher., he had heard from his first year Slytherins that they had been playing pranks on his sister and he hadn't appreciated it. But he had also heard from Draco, who heard from Ron Weasely that the twins had actually stopped the pranks against her, as they refused to witness blatant bullying of a firsty who had yet to do anything. Honestly he didn't know what to believe, and he didn't care, just as long as she wasn't being hurt anymore.

"Will you find her for me, and then send her home?" He asked, his self preservation instinct kicking in. He was the heir to the Flint house, and if something happened to him his father would find him beyond the grave and kill him again.

"You know I will," Severus told him before turning to address the rest of his table.

Marcus nodded as he walked out of the Great Hall, unaware of what was unfolding how his little sister was going to end up smack in the middle of it. He had no idea the danger that was starting to unfold nor how his life and everyone else's would change as well.

Severus sighed as most of his 5th, 6th, and 7th years all walked out of the hall. He had hoped the younger ones had followed suit. Well if he was being honest with himself, the half-bloods and the few on the low muggleborn students had also left. Turning to look around the Great hall, he could see that the remaining students were either pure-bloods, or half-bloods who hadn't grown up in the muggle world. He sighed but this was better then none of them leaving. He looked at his students, preparing for their protests even before he said it.

"Okay listen up snakes, this is extremely important that you pay attention to every word that I am saying," Severus started off. He could see every eye on him once more and he quickly got to the point of no one being allowed in the tower. He winced at the loud voices of protest, but a stern glare was enough to shut them all up. He gestured to Draco who looked like he was going to choke on the one word that they all wanted to voice,

"Why can't we?" Draco asked in a shocked tone.

"Because if the Lava somehow gets in, it will destroy everything in its path. And before it makes it way to the second level of the school it will demolish the first. Our tower is located in the Dungeons, one of the lower parts of the castle, I don't need to explain to you how dangerous that position makes us. In short, we would be sitting ducks," Severus replied.

"But what about all of our things?" Pansy Parkinson exclaimed, clearly distraught over losing her valuables. As materialistic as she was about things, she did currently have a point.

"As soon as you finish eating, you will be allowed to go back to the common room and your dorms to get whatever you want to bring with you. But after that I am sealing it so no one can return until I can be sure that it is completely safe," Severus finished.

He could see that while they didn't like the plan, they weren't protesting anymore. He could also see that the majority of his table was already getting up and making their way out of the door. He canceled the spell before he headed out himself, going to his office so he could get his students that wanted to go home out. He had no idea that a couple of his snakes would ignore his warning, and place themselves along with every other teacher there in danger as they tried to get them out.

~*~*~*~*Corridors 5:40pm~*~*~*~

Harry held Amanda's hand tightly, not wanting to get separated from the only other person. They didn't know really what to say, and the past 5 minutes or so had been awkward to say the least. At least it was until Amanda had told a joke that Harry hadn't heard since primary school and they both broke out into giggles. Now they were chatting despite their horrible circumstances, and their conversation was taking their mind off of their current situation. Harry couldn't see anyone in their portraits, and he shuddered, unsure of what that might mean. He felt Amanda squeeze his hand comfortably and he relaxed slightly. He unlike her really knew his way around, so in the dark was no problem.

They stopped as one suddenly when they felt rather then heard Hogwarts groaning. As they inched their way towards the next set of stairs, Harry could swear he heard faint screaming coming from below. Something in him, was telling him to continue to go up. He had seen the lava, but he had remembered that if you felt scared or just off to go to the infirmary, and that was on the second floor. They had to go down, regardless of how he felt on the inside. He swallowed before turning his gaze to Amanda.

"You ready?" He whispered.

"Yeah," she replied softly as she swallowed a tearful lump in her throat. All she want was her big brother, as she had never felt this scared in her life before. Amanda had always been protected by Marcus, as she was constantly called their little miracle baby. Her mother had been told after having her big brother that she wouldn't be able to have children, even with the aid of potions but then she came along. Everyone spoiled her, especially her daddy, and all she wanted right now was to be at home in his arms.

"It'll be alright," Harry told her quietly.

"How do you know?" Amanda mumbled, trying to keep from crying. Up until she had exited the Tower, she hadn't yet fully grasped the severity of the situation. But from their point on the top of the stairs, she could smell something burning; and the smell was making her stomach turn. They didn't know that the smell wasn't just the lava but also of burning flesh, a smell they never wanted to breath.

"I don't, but I'm hoping that it will be," Harry said trying but failing to be optimistic.

"I want my brother," she sniffled out.

"Shh, and we'll find him, just please don't cry," Harry pleaded, his calm facade starting to crack as she started to lose it.

Amanda nodded, her shiny brown eyes could see the panic in his emerald ones, and she didn't want him losing it as she was following him. "I'm okay, I'm okay Harry," she told him tearfully.

"Okay," Harry said after a moment as they continued down the next set of steps. He didn't complain about the tight grip she had on his hand, because he was pretty sure he was squeezing hers just as tight.

~*~*~The Infirmary 4:00pm~*~*~*~*~*~

Poppy led the students to her domain, not noticing until she got there, that she had gain a bit more students on her way. She had each one in a bed, with a calming potion in their system. She still have a few of the Third years from Harry's class earlier, but they were still sleeping. As the infirmary quieted, as the children rested she went over to the entrance to it and touched it with her palm. Though she didn't know if Hogwarts itself was protected from Natural elements, she knew for a fact that her infirmary was.

This was the most sacred place of any business, or school, and it had to be protected. The wards around it activated the minute she placed her wand and her hand against the wall. She could literally see the magic moving across the walls and the entire area of the hospital wing. Whatever it was that was going on, they would be protected. Her and her students wouldn't get hurt. She wasn't sure honestly what was going to happen but for the time being it didn't matter. After telling the woke students to play quietly she disappeared into her office, wanting to make sure that if something were to happen that she would be prepared for it, making sure that all of her burn salves and potions were upfront, with an unbreakable charm on them.


	4. Chapter 4: Who will Save the Children?

**A/N- The time changes will stop eventually but right now its supposed to be confusing and chaotic, kind of like they are feeling. :)**

**Chapter 4: Who will save the Children?**

~*~*~*~Snape's Office 4:30~*~*~*~*~*~

Severus took a seat on his chair, as his last Slytherin flooed home. His floo powder canister was still half full, so he knew he would have enough(hopefully) for his remaining Slytherins. He had wished that all of them had chosen to go home, but of course they hadn't. He knew he couldn't legally take them out of school without their parents explicit permission and that was impossible in such a short time. He shook his head, knowing he didn't have time to rest. The lava he had seen, not to mention the air he had breathed outside, had told him that it was coming and there was no stopping it. He shook his head, as he finally stood up and made his way of of his office. He hurried to the Slytherin common room. He walked in and looked around to find most of his Slytherins ready and packed and looking at him with a stoic expression.

"You are free to go anywhere but outside and back to the Common room. I would suggest however, that you head upstairs as high as you can in any case. I don't know what today has in store for us, but it would make me worry less if my snakes were out of harms away," Severus told them honestly. With a chorus of yes sir's he watched them leave, making his way towards the fireplace. As the common room emptied out, he started making his way up the stairs and into the dorms. He felt that he needed to be thorough, he would never forgive himself if one of his snakes got sealed in here because of his negligence. Not to mention depending how the situation went, their life would surely be in danger.

As he started on the first year girl's side, he had no idea what his third years were planning. He checked every closed curtain and under each and every bed, in each and every wardrobe and every stall. And then after that, he did a magical scan just to make sure that no one was hiding before he deemed it done and walked out and did the next year. Surprisingly it didn't take him that long before he finished all dorms on the girls side and he made his way to the boy's. He found a few stragglers in the 2nd year boy's dorm, but none on the third or forth.

He thought he heard voices as he made his way up but when he did he scan each time, nothing had came up. He didn't think to check the 7th year trunks, he didn't think there was a need. As all of his 7th years had gone, he didn't stop to think that someone would hide in the secret compartment in one of the trunks. He knew that Adrian Pucey, his Slytherin Seeker had a room compartment in his trunk, because his home life situation wasn't the best. Severus didn't think that a few of his thirds years would know that, though he should have as Pucey's younger brother was a third year who had been sent home.

As he gave the 7th years a final sweep, he walked out of the room and down to the common room, doing a thorough check he walked through the portrait, and nearly bumped straight into Draco who looked to be coming in. He raised an eyebrow at the boy's deer caught in the headlights look.

"Professor!" Draco squeaked, his heart thudding painfully in his chest. He looked up at the man dark gaze before looking at his feet. It was always safer to look down then up, as Snape had a knack for catching liars.

"Draco I do hope you have gotten all that you wanted, as I am sealing the doors now," Severus told him firmly.

Draco nodded instinctively, as he looked at the man fearfully. He knew this was not a man to mess with, but he figured he would be able to still get into his common room. He knew now that Snape hadn't been able to find his friends so his plan to hide in the trunk had worked! The only crummy part was he was supposed to be in there! He didn't believe the batty old man about the Volcano and he was a bit embarrassed that his Head of house did. Draco had no intention of spending time in the company of the lions or any other house. He was most comfortable in his dorm, so that was naturally where he wanted to be. Besides it wasn't fair that the other houses got to stay in their common rooms and the snakes couldn't. What a load of crap!

"Is there something else you needed or forgot to get?" Severus asked, as he was trying to determine why Draco was looking so pale like he did.

"No sir," Draco replied softly.

He wanted to tell the man what was going on, but he knew his friends would never forgive him if he sold them out like that. So Draco watched him with dismay as the man preformed a complicated spell, one that made his heart nearly stopped beating. He could see the satisfied expression on the man's face after preforming it; and Draco knew he had no hope of ever breaking it. Snape was his father's go to man for a reason.

"There, we should get out of here," Severus told him as he tucked his wand away. He didn't think anything was wrong; and really why should there be? He didn't know what his students had done, and the danger they had unknowingly placed themselves in.

Draco nodded silently as he followed the man out of the Dungeons. He continued to walk towards the Great Hall, as Snape made a detour to his office. He was planning on going back to see if there was a crack in his Professor's spell so he could get back in, as he was sure that his friends were having the time of their lives, while he was stuck out here.

~*~*~*McGonagall's Office 5:35pm~*~*~*

Ron was standing towards the back with his brother's as they watched their Professor placing 3-4 students in the floo together and tossing the right amount of powder in. He wasn't sure just where they were going but, but he knew that anyplace was better then here. As he looked around; he could see an assortment of colors, every house was in here, and they were all terrified. The third year shook as he remembered seeing the boy being burned alive. He had wanted to look away but he hadn't been able to and had witnessed the horror of it all, and now he couldn't get it out of his head.

His trembling attracted the concerned gazes of his older brothers whose faces were devoid of their usual mischievous grins. It was quite disconcerting to see the twins, looking serious as they did. Then again a situation like the one they were currently in could turn anyone. They all knew that there was nothing funny about what was going on. Not to mention Percy, being the Head boy had gone with the teachers to search for some students and they had jokingly told him not to come back. At least they had until they lava burned down the entrance doors and then they realized the extent of the danger they were all in. Ron was worried as he hadn't seen Harry in a while, one minute he had been next to him looking at the window and when Ron had looked back his friend was gone!

He couldn't understand just where his mate was but he was uneasy about the whole thing. Especially since this morning he had just seen the bruises on his back when they had been changing. He had pretended that he hadn't seen anything but he had and he was extremely distressed at what he had seen on his mate's body. He hugged his torso area for a moment, trying to get his shaking under control.

"Relax Ronnie, we'll be home in just a moment, everything is fine," Fred soothed as he looked at his younger brother closely.

"M'okay, just worried about Harry," Ron admitted softly as he stared at the ground. He didn't even mind the pet name at the moment, it actually made him feel a little bit better. He could see Ginny, how did she get way up there, shoved in the fireplace with Luna and another Hermione before they disappeared into the flames. Well at least his baby sister and friend was okay.

He was unaware of the look that passed between his twin brother's as they looked around suddenly, as if realizing the raven haired boy wasn't there. They frowned before George or was it Fred bent down to his brother's level. "Stay here Ronnie," he told him seriously as he ruffled his hair.

"Why where are you going?" Ron asked, his eyes wide in his fear.

"To make sure Percy doesn't do something stupid as mum would never forgive us," Fred replied softly as they made their way quietly towards the door.

"I wanna come, don't leave me," Ron pleaded, tears springing into his eyes without his permission. He couldn't help the sudden ache he got in his chest;like he was going to lose something dear. He didn't want his brothers to risk themselves, he just couldn't bear it if something happened to one of them. He followed them towards the door, pressing against his brother's body.

"No Ronnie, mum would kill us if something happened to you," Fred told him gently as leaned down and pressed a soft kiss into his brother's hair. He didn't know what compelled him to do it, but it just felt right.

Ron sniffled, not even bothered by it as his fingers gripped, one of the twin's shirt. He bit down hard on his lip as the tears fell without his permission. "Don't leave me," he begged tearfully. He wasn't even ashamed of himself in that moment, as he needed them to stay. It physically hurt inside at the thought of them going.

"We'll come back Ronnie, I promise," George told him as he gently pried his brother's hands off of his shirt. "Don't fret, we'll be home in no time," he said before they silently disappeared out the door.

Ron stood there staring at the barely closed door for a few minutes after they left, unwilling to believe that they had actually left him here alone. He had never felt more hurt then he did right now, wanting to hurt them as well. He turned back towards his Head of house, who was once more putting a small group into the fireplace. She wasn't paying any attention to what was going on by the door. He took a deep breath before he walked out of the office, shutting it tight behind him.

He swiped his tearful face angrily, clearly he didn't mean crap to his brothers as they had left him there alone. He wouldn't stay there, he would find Harry and they would leave. Ron wiped his dripping nose on the sleeve of his shirt before he took off towards Great Hall, hoping that Harry would be there; as he didn't honestly believe the boy had gone to the infirmary. If he didn't find him in the Great Hall, he would check there however. And if he we wasn't there, Ron would just go up and hope that he found his mate; but he wasn't going to stop searching for him, not until he found him.

~*~*~*Stairwells 6:00pm~*~*~*~

Harry was panting as they quickly went down, part of it was because of how fast they were running down the steps, the other was because the heat was rising. He turned towards Amanda who looked just as bad as he felt. Her face was sweaty and red and she was breathing a bit funny. He wanted to slow down but he knew that would be a bad idea. He held tight to her hand, their sweat mixing and making one anther's hands a bit slippery; but they were afraid of letting go.

As they made it halfway down the staircase that would descend onto the 2nd floor Amanda suddenly started coughing. Harry turned to ask her what was wrong, until he found to his horror that he was having a cough attack too. He had to close his eyes suddenly as he they started burning, stopping their movement so they didn't tumble down the steps.

"I..can't...breathe!" She gasped out, the air was putrid. The gas was thick, if one could open their eyes a bit, they could literally say they could see it. And it was hot, it was like drowning on dry land, as the air was suffocating.

"We should go back up," Harry choked out, trying to open his eyes so they could turn around.

He didn't see Amanda's nod but he felt her hand squeeze his which let him know that they were on the same page. As he slowly turned, his resisted the urge to rub his watery eyes, knowing that would make it worse. They started making their way up back up the steps as quickly as they could when Harry felt the first step crumble under his feet. He nearly fell through, but he managed it and touched the next one only to find Amanda falling through it.

"Harry!" She screamed, a terrified sound that had the boy's heart stop for a moment.

It seemed like time was slowing down as she saw herself fall, but Harry's grip never wavered on her hand, even as he pulled her up. Her heart was thudding painfully in her chest as they ran up the steps, she didn't look back as she could feel the steps they had just been on falling to the ground. They had almost made it to the top one when she fell through again, only this time the grip on her hand was more sweaty then before, and it didn't feel as tight.

"Hold on Mandy!" Harry yelled down to her, as he had made it on the top step and was safe for the most part. He was on solid ground. He could see the staircase falling but what had his eye balls nearly falling out of his sockets was the bright red lava that was making its way under her. It had completely covered the first floor, and he hoped to whoever was up above that everyone had made it out of there.

"Ow! Its burning me!" She screamed painfully, as just being over it had the effect of feeling like she was being burnt, and she was. Her shoes was starting to melt, all over her socks and her feet, and Amanda screamed again.

"Don't let go Manda!" Harry told her frantically as he tried to pull her up. He had both his hands holding onto her wrist, so he couldn't grab his wand. He could see her tear streaked face, as he tried to pull her up.

Harry grunted as he tried with all of his might to lift the girl up. It wouldn't have been a difficult task even with a small boy like Harry. But they had just gone down numerous flights of stairs, and then ran back up one, and this small exhausted and hurt boy had nothing left in him. All he could do was let her hang there, but he couldn't lift her up. He prayed to whoever that someone would find them, especially as he felt his hands on hers slipping.

"Don't drop me Harry! Please I'm scared!" Amanda cried out tearfully as the grip loosened and she slid down a half of an inch. Her feet were burned she was sure of it, but she didn't care, she just didn't want to fall.

"Hold on!" Harry yelled before trying to look to see if anyone was near him, that only had the effect of him sliding a bit forward and her dropping a bit more. He sniffled, unable to brush away the tears that were starting to fall from his own eyes as he realized the helplessness of their plight. He was too weak to lift her up, and he knew he couldn't hold her forever.

"I'm sorry for how my brother treated you, he's not like that at home. Please I'm sorry, don't drop me Harry, please!" She pleaded as she struggled to hang on.

"It okay Mandy," Harry replied trying to be calm before he was trying once more to lift her up. He grunted as he felt forward suddenly dropping her even further down and his torso leaning off the edge. "Oh Merlin, someone help us!" He yelled out fearfully as he body slowly started sliding off. He couldn't let her go, but he knew if he didn't, he would fall in and they would both die. He didn't think he could live with himself, as she was only 11, he had to be strong! He wasn't ashamed either, to into his fear to hear that someone had heard their screams.

"Harry! I'm slipping!" Amanda shrieked horrified as they slid some more. She closed her eyes when she heard him yell out but nothing had prepared her for the moment when she felt that her fingers were no longer grasping his but now air. She opened her eyes to see Harry's horrified green ones looking down at her as she fell his arms still reaching even though they both knew he would never reach her. She saw him getting pulled back by someone with a dark cloak when he started to tumble down after her. The 11 year old closed her eyes tight as the hot air became painful as she fell, and though she tried to be brave she couldn't stopped crying because she knew for her that this was the end.


	5. Chapter 5: An Unexpected Savior

**A/N-**** I know i just updated, but I'm trying to get this story up to date with the on on P&S, especially since I've got a bunch of reviews, I feel like I can update it. As always, I've done some research on Volcanos, but as it is, I have never experienced one. Thankfully! One more thing to remember this is fanfic, dont like, well no one is holding a gun to your head and saying *Read this story, or I'll blow your brains out* get over yourself. That is all, enjoy, and I'm sorry about the Cliffy.****  
******

**Chapter 5: An Unexpected Savior**

"No! Amanda!" Harry yelled out tearfully as he fought against the arms that had saved him. He didn't want to be saved, he fought against them, unsure of who even had him as he was blind in his grief. His tears had taken over everything, and he couldn't stop seeing Amanda's face as she realized that she had been let go. She had slipped; he had meant to continue holding her, but something had happened.

"Potter stop, she's gone," Severus told him in a gentle voice that he had only used once on this particular child. Could it really have been only a couple hours prior to right now?

"No she's not, I just saw her," Harry said piteously as he cried. "She's my friend! Amanda!" He screeched out as he continued to struggle in his Professor's arms, his arms reaching out to empty air.

Severus held the boy firm as he pulled him back away from the edge and up another flight of steps, trying to put as much distance as he could. He wanted to spare the boy the death of a classmate. He was kicking himself up on the inside. Because he knew that if he had only arrived a second sooner, he could have had them both.

"She's gone, and she's not coming back," Severus told him a bit more firmer, though his voice still had the gentleness to it, it also had an undertone of sadness in it.

"Mandy's still a baby, she can't be dead. Her brother's going to kill me," Harry blubbered out hysterically.

"What are you talking about?" Severus asked, a pit of dread appearing in his stomach as he recognized the name from earlier.

"Flint, Marcus is going to kill me. She's only 11," Harry said as he chewed his cloak to try to stop crying. He remembered the way she look as she fell and he just couldn't. He didn't know how to handle this, as he had never lost someone this close to him, not to mention younger then him. He couldn't remember his parents so that didn't really count.

"Sweet Merlin," Severus said as he absently turned the boy to his chest who really started to sob in earnest. He had told his Slytherin that he would watch out for her and make sure she got to safety and here he had failed. His heart weighed heavy in his chest, at the thought of telling him the news.

Harry was coming down from his denial, and his cries had turned to heart wrenching sobs, for the 11 year old girl who never grow up. Who would never become the Medi-witch who specializes in children both the muggle and wizarding children. The girl who would never again play quidditch with her big brother, and who would never tell Harry the funniest jokes he had ever heard. The one with the brown eyes, who despite their situation had always smiled even through her tears. He gasped softly, feeling like his heart would explode out of his chest.

"It's all my fault, I should've held her tighter. I'm sorry, so sorry. Oh Mandy I'm sorry," Harry sobbed out, his tearful pleas, hurting even Snape who was the only one around to hear.

"Hush Potter, it's not your fault, " Severus told him softly, his hand going to rubbed the boy's back to try to calm him down.

He was completely out of his element, and wasn't sure he was doing the whole comforting thing right. He headed up to the fourth floor and stopped, the child still securely in his arms as he continued to cry. Severus sighed as he took a seat on the stone floor, the boy still nestled in his torso. He was getting caught up in his own thoughts and grief that a part of him wasn't sure that he was truly holding Potter. But then again, he knew who was blubbering into his chest, but at this point in time even he wasn't about to deny the little boy this small method of comfort. Especially when he had seen pieces of his horrendous childhood, and no one had ever been there for him. What kind of person would he be if he turned the child away now?

~*~*~*Entrance Hall 5:45~*~*~*~*~

Draco stared in horror as he looked at the entrance doors to Hogwarts. He was standing directly in the line of lava, as his shock took over his body. He had been trying ever since Snape had sealed the doors to break it, but he hadn't been able to get his friends out. They had been yelling through the doors, that something was happening outside as they could see from their dorms. He didn't need to ask what it was they saw as he was currently looking at it.

He had never heard Theodore sound frightened, as in Slytherin you never showed a weakness to anyone let alone your friends. He couldn't understand them because Pansy's crying had been extremely loud. He didn't even know why he let the girl into their plan, before shaking his head as he remembered how she had blackmailed them by saying she was telling Snape. He gasped as he saw the doors crumble to ask as the hot liquid had him sweating.

How was he going to get his friends out? He didn't even know where Snape was or any other Professor. Where the bloody hell was going on? He had never felt so alone then he did in that moment. He turned around, hoping to see just one single soul, but he saw no one. He took off back the way he came, knowing that Snape had been right in their assessment and that the lava was taking over the whole first floor. He couldn't let his friends be burned alive! As he turned a corner, he found himself colliding with something else, and as the thing grunted he deduced that it was another person.

"Malfoy! Watch where you're going!" Ron said angrily. He wasn't truly angry at the boy as he hadn't been paying attention to where he was going. His face was still blotchy but he didn't particularly care, as this was serious.

"I wouldn't go that way if I were you Weasely," Draco told him hurriedly as the boy had quickly gotten up and was about to turn the corner once more.

"Well its a good thing you're not me," Ron replied shortly before continuing.

"You idiot, do you wanna die?!" Draco screeched as he pulled the boy back. His emotions were haywire, and he didn't know what to do. All he could think about his friends being trapped and then being killed by the lava. It was a horrible way to go and to think that this had been his idea he was blaming himself; rightly so.

"The bloody hell is your problem?" Ron asked, turning to look at the other boy in confusion.

"There is lava, pouring into Hogwarts as we speak," Draco replied hoarsely before shaking his head in disbelief.

"It got in then?" Ron whispered in horror.

"Yeah the entrance doors are a pile of ash," Draco replied softly.

"Oh Merlin, did you happen to see any of my brothers come pass you?" Ron asked worriedly.

"No I saw no one. It's deserted," Draco answered. "Have you seen any Professors?" He found himself asking. Now was not the time to be proud, he needed help.

"Professor McGonagall is in her office, evacuating students, as is the rest of the Professors," Ron told him.

"I need help," Draco found himself saying, the tips of his ears turning red in his embarrassment.

"What's the matter?" Ron inquired curiously.

"The Slytherin Tower was sealed by Snape, but my friends hid in a secret compartment in a trunk and now they're trapped in there. The lava is moving fast, if they don't get out they'll die," Draco told him, not even caring that tears were stinging the back of his eyes.

Ron was staring at Draco in horror. "I just want to let you know that what they did was an incredibly stupid thing to do," he said stating the obvious.

"I know that now, but we thought the Headmaster was lying," Draco sniffled defensively.

"He's most certainly not joking. I saw a Slytherin Chaser get burned to death Malfoy, trust me when I say, this is serious," Ron replied choking on his words. That was the first time he uttered the words; about the boy. Even as he had seen it, but saying it just made it more true, even if he had witnessed it.

"Who was it?" Draco asked despite the horror he was feeling. He didn't want to believe it, but there was three Chasers and he knew all three.

"I don't want to talk about it, lets go find a Professor. Where is Snape when you need him?" Ron muttered as he took off the way he came back up the steps with Draco at his heels.

~*~*~*Third Floor Corridors 6:10pm ~*~*~*~

It was about 10 minutes later that Severus found himself standing up. He knew that it was unsafe for them to remain here even longer then they had been. He wasn't naïve as to think that the lava had stayed where it was; knowing how fast it was making its way through the castle. He turned his gaze towards the mop of messy black haired child who had ceased his hysterical sobbing and was producing what could only be classified as soft whimpers. He shook his head as he continued his back rub as he walked through the hall. He was on the alert for wayward students, as they needed to get them all to safety. As he turned towards the DADA classroom, he sneered as he saw the wolf coming out of his office. He held the child tighter, causing him to look up in alarm.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked softly as he felt the man tensed. Was the lava coming back to kill them like it got Manda? He buried his face in the man's shoulder once more.

"Nothing for you to worry about," Severus told him as the man spotted them and turned in their direction.

"Severus, I've just finished evacuating the students in my office. Do you know how many are left?" Remus asked before he caught a glimpse of the child on the Potion's master's shoulder. His nostrils flared at the fresh saltwater he could smell on the boy.

"I was just heading to the Headmaster's office to see," Severus told him curtly; before sighing. "And before you ask, he has just witness a classmate's death," he murmured, seeing the man's sharp look.

"Oh cub," Remus gasped instinctively going towards the child. He could tell by the narrowed eyes of Severus that he was getting to close but he didn't care. He did however stopped, and opened his arms the universal gesture that asked if he could hold the child.

"Here," Severus told him as started to hold out Harry, trying to ignore the small pain in his chest. He knew that the wolf would be able to comfort him better, and in turn the boy would cling to the last of his last link to his parents.

It was irrational and sudden the small sliver of jealously he felt, as he wanted to be the only one to comfort Harry. These protective and caring feeling were new, as he wanted the protect the little boy, and not just because he was his best friend's son. He growled inwardly, this wasn't about him and his newly discovered feelings, this was about the sad little boy in his arm. He started to hold the child out to Lupin only to stop suddenly as he heard a small voice.

"No, don't. I wanna stay with you. Please? Don't send me away. I'll be a good boy," Harry whimpered over and over again; as his fingers clenched tight to his teacher's robes. He was holding on for dear life not wanting to be separated from the safety of Snape.

Severus sighed as he brought the boy back to his chest. He didn't want to answer the man's unasked questions, they didn't have time for this. There was so many things they still needed to do. He however did know that he would have to address this, as the last of Harry's whimpering had turned to pleading and he knew exactly what it stemmed from.

"Let's go Lupin," he muttered as he continued his path to the Headmaster's office. He didn't say anything to Minerva when they found her coming out of her own office with a distressed look on her face. Severus was only focused on Harry; and at the moment could care less about what she had to say. He knew that when they made it to Albus that he would hear what had the Headmistress in a twit, and he only hoped that more children hadn't died. As Harry didn't need to hear any of that.

~*~*~*~The Headmaster's Office 6:35pm ~*~*~*~

Albus Dumbledore had just flooed the last of the students that he had managed to get into his office. He sat on his desk, the alarms around his office going off as another section of Hogwarts was destroyed. He was afraid, he had never felt such fear as he felt at that very moment. Oh it wasn't for himself, but for his students, and his staff. His children if you will, he knew he had missed some and he already knew that hoping that his other Professors had gotten the rest was futile. It was indeed an old man's wish.

Hogwarts was huge, and he could only pray that they had all gotten out safely. He sighed wearily, something compelling him to grab the registry book of wizarding students enrolled in Hogwarts. He turned the pages slowly, not sure what he was looking for until he saw a name disappear from a page. He knew what that represented. A name didn't just disappear for nothing. For that to happen a student had to have been deceased and was then no longer registered at Hogwarts. He gasped as a few more names started to disappear as if they had never been there at all.

He knew every single one of his students; so each blank page he felt a piece of his heart break off a little bit more. He took a moment to grieve, for each and every child that was lost. He could hear Fawkes, singing a mournful song, knowing that he failed. He was bent over his book, unable and unwilling to look away when the door to his office flew open. He looked up at the intruders, their fearful expressions had him coming back to himself and setting his book to the side. He looked at his 3 Professor's sadly, trying but failing to get a grip on his emotions.

"Albus what is it?" Minerva asked, as they could all see the tears on his cheeks.

"We didn't get all the students," Albus replied, as he took off his glasses and wiped his eyes with his handkerchief.

"Merlin, the registry book showed you I presume?" Severus asked quietly, his hand unconsciously going to rest on the back of Harry's head. He didn't want the child to hear this, but he himself couldn't miss this information.

"It did, I watched a few names disappearing. More are joining them now as we speak," Albus replied before taking a shuddering breath, as he looked back to the book.

"Any Slytherins?" Severus couldn't help but ask. He cared for all of his students, but he was closer to the ones in his house as was the case for all the other Head of houses.

"Too many," Albus replied softly. "And Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs," he continued before the rest of them could ask.

"Who?" Severus requested softly.

"Don't ask me that Severus," Albus replied, his voice tired and thick with tears of grief.

"I'm sorry," Severus replied almost automatically. He hadn't stopped to think how the man might be feeling, having to see name after name disappear; knowing exactly what that meant.

"It's alright," Albus told him quietly. "They didn't deserve this. My poor children," he gasped out quietly as he saw one name flicker as if they were fighting death before it suddenly disappeared.

"Whose name was flickering Albus?" Minerva asked, unable to help herself. She was slowly inching close but she hadn't been able to see it fully.

"A Gryffindor," Albus replied quietly before swallowing and shaking his head at her. He would could not, and would not tell her who. He didn't need her blaming herself as he was doing to himself now. He was pulled out of his thoughts however when someone spoke. He looked up once more and truly focused on the people in his office. Now that he thought about it, why was Harry with Severus.

"Which one? Albus?" Minerva asked in spite of the pounding in her heart.

"Not right now Minnie," Albus murmured as he took a lemon drop from the desk and popped it in his mouth.

"What does that mean? What does the book show?" Harry asked, curiously; finally poking his head out from his teacher's shoulder. He hadn't been listening to the conversation, but something just perked his interest. Not to mention the Headmaster sounded so sad, it was starting to creep him out. The teachers had all forgotten about the child up into that moment.

"The names of all the students in Hogwarts. Harry my boy, how are you?" Albus replied, trying to fix his tone so that Harry couldn't hear the worry in his voice.

"I'm fine," Harry replied quietly. "Were you talking about the kids that...died?" Harry choked out softly.

"Yes Harry, we were," Severus replied softly. "Don't think about it," he told him knowing exactly where the child's thoughts were going to. More specifically who.

"I can't not do that. Headmaster? Can...could you see if Amanda Flint is still in there?" He asked, swallowing hard as a wave of grief threatened to expel him. He knew she was gone, but he felt that he needed a bit of closure since he knew she probably wasn't going to get a funeral anytime soon. He rubbed his cheek against his teacher's shoulder, releasing a shuddering breath. He felt the man"s hand resume his soothing back rub.; making him feel good on the inside. If the situation wasn't so bad, he really would have relished in the comfort.

"Of course Harry," Albus replied looking at the small boy with a confused expression. After all he didn't know what happened to the girl.

"Amanda Flint was holding onto him when she fell from the second floor, where there was lava collecting underneath her. Potter would have fallen as well if I hadn't pulled him back at the last second," Severus explained feeling the child stiffen at his words; and Minerva gasp. He had remembered that she probably hadn't known this.

"I don't like it when you call me Potter," Harry whispered tearfully in the man's ear.

Every time he heard Snape called him that, he only remembered the man sneering down at him and making fun of him. Like his Uncle tended to do. But when he called him Harry, he could see the man who held him, and let him cry into his chest. Just thinking on that had him blinking away tears. There was the mean Snape and then the not so mean Snape. Could he help it if he wanted the security and safety he got with the latter?

"Why not? It's your last name," Severus told him quietly.

"My Uncle calls me that, when he's about to hurt me," Harry admitted before sniffling.

Severus stilled himself at the child's admission, and he could hear the intake of breaths in the office, making him remember that they were far from alone; and not every occupant had known that. He looked at Albus who looked even older if that was possible before he resumed looking at the book.

"Amanda, the first year Gryffindor. She's alive," Albus found himself saying as he read it, and she was. Her name wasn't flickering, but he could see that it had turned a red color which meant the child in question was injured. "But she's hurt," he continued.

"She's alive? How? But I saw her fall," Harry asked, refusing to believe it, he knew what he saw!

"I'm sure someone else did as well, and they saved her. As it is, I hope that she's in good hands," Albus told him as there was nothing more he could say and he turned the page to see who else was there, or wasn't.

Harry quieted at that, but he didn't poke his head up anymore. He was safe in Snape's arms, and he wasn't about to leave that. Or at least that's what he was planning on doing until he heard his head of houses voice.

"Severus set Harry down, so I can floo him to safety," Minerva told him briskly. She was still bristling over the news of about her lions. Not to mention she couldn't understand just why Harry was clinging to Severus that way, especially considering their history together.

"No!" Harry screamed out, his arms tightening around the man's neck, lest someone try to yank him away from his Potion's Professor.

"Mr. Potter, enough of this. You will get down and come to me right this moment! We do not have time for this," the Headmistress said in her no-nonsense voice, that usually had students quick to do what she wanted. She made her way towards the child, ignoring the glare she was receiving from Severus.

"No, I'm a good boy. I didn't do anything wrong! I wanna stay with Snape!" Harry whimpered out hysterically, his eyes shut tight as his legs and arms securely attached themselves to his Professor's body. He trembled in the man's arms violently, as the items in the Headmaster's office started to rattle with his magic. He didn't seem the alarmed expressions on the Professor's in the office, nor the fact that his Head of House was now backing off.

"Calm down Harry, you're not going anywhere. I told you that you were going to stay with me, and I meant that," Severus told him gently, his eyes like knives from how sharp he was looking at the Gryffindor Head of house; who looked at alarmed as the rest of the occupants in the office. He was starting to understand that seeing the small girl fall had been a bit too much for the child. He seemed to be suffering from mild flashbacks, and Severus hoped they wouldn't get any worse. His heart heart every time he heard the child say that he was a good boy, he had know desire to know why he was so insistent.

"She's going to make me go," Harry told him tearfully as he sniffles returned.

"Minerva wouldn't dare," Severus repeated trying to calm the tears; and to his relief(and everyone elses) everything stopped shaking. The glass figurines on Albus's desk, stopped rattling almost instantly when he calmed down.

"Okay," Harry whispered. He was aware that he wasn't acting his age, but who the heck cared? So Amanda wasn't dead but she was hurt, and unaccounted for, that was just as bad; so he knew he had a right to be upset. He had seen her fall, a person didn't just bounce back from that, especially if there was lava underneath!

Albus found his blue eyes twinkling in spite of the situation as he looked at his two boys. He had always known that they could benefit from each other, he was only sadden that it took a tragedy like this to get it going. He sighed as he stared at them, before turning to his familiar who had left his perch and was now singing a song to Harry. He was relieved when the child's tensed shoulder started to relax.

"Albus what are we going to do? Hogwarts won't stand a chance against this," Remus murmured when it seemed that no one was going to speak.

"I do not know and at the moment I do not care. My first priority isn't the castle, but the remaining children inside. According to the registry there are approximately 25 students still inside the school. Now before you ask there are: 8 Gryffindors, 7 Slytherins, 4 Hufflepuffs, and 6 Ravenclaws," Albus told them.

"Is there anyway that you can let us know who they are?" Severus asked, a sinking in the pit of his stomach, at the mention of the 7 Slytherins. He had told them to go up, and head to the library and he knew that everyone up there had been evacuated. He didn't have a good feeling about this, and neither did the small boy in his arms as he he whined at the news. Severus knew that Harry was no doubt afraid to hear if he knew the Gryffindors.

"Who are the Gryffindors?" Minerva asked quietly.

"Well Harry is one of them of course, but oh dear. Molly isn't going to like this," Albus breathed out quietly. He shook his head as he saw that not one or two but 4 of her sons were still inside the school and in danger as long as they were in the castle. He wasn't about to speak it aloud, not when he could see those emerald green eyes peeking through a curtain of hair in curiosity.

"Which one of her boys is it?" Minerva asked with a bit of dread in her stomach.

Before Albus could say anything, he looked up as the guardian guarding his office, suddenly sent him an alert that someone was trying to guess the password and get in. He knew that it had to be students and he quickly had the guardian grant them access. He didn't know what was wrong, but he had a hunch that whatever it was wasn't going to be good news.

"Albus? What is it?" Remus asked softly.

"We have more visitors," he told them as he turned towards the door to wait for the knock, that he knew would come.

~*~*~*~2nd floor Corridor 6:15pm ~*~*~*~

Sirius Black was currently making his way through the second floor of the castle. The escaped convict, was shaking his head in disbelief. As a dog he had heard all sorts of rumors of what had been going on, but hearing it from the Headmaster's mouth had been the kicker. If the situation hadn't been so severe he would have never braved being in his human form. The reason he was out, is that he wanted to make sure that his godson was safe, and he couldn't really do that if he was a dog. He sighed as he took in the sight in front of him. He had never see the castle look this deserted, which is why he felt confident that no one would run into him.

Oh he wasn't as stupid as one might think which is why when he came across a fallen wand he picked it up, and was in the process of disguising himself when he heard it. He heard that cringing ear piercing shriek that all little girls do, only something told him that whoever was screaming was in some serious trouble. His first reaction was to find her and save her, before he remembered himself. Acting impulsively had led to him getting incarcerated and Harry being raised by someone other then him. He had a plan to catch Peter and he was sticking with it.

At the moment, he wiped the brow from his eyes, he could see no one and had deduced that the scream had come from up above. He continued to walk, wondering why the temperature seemed to keep rising. He wasn't yet sure what was going on, until he lost himself in his thoughts and almost walked straight into the lava. He gasped loudly as he hurriedly stepped back, at the hot liquid seemed to destroy everything in his path. He didn't need to look down to know that the whole bottom floor seemed to be destroyed or on its way to it.

He turned to transform when he heard the scream again, only this time it was occupied by another, a familiar voice! Looking up he could see Harry, and some girl hanging off the edge of the staircase. Sirius pulled out the borrowed wand, and made a strong shield of water to prevent the lava from coming towards him while he focused on not letting the children fall. That plan fell through however, when the girl was suddenly falling, her screams echoing in his ears, as he watched her fall. She looked like she was first year, and he knew he had to catch her. She was only a baby, his own safety be damned! He hadn't even called out a spell as his wand caught her, and due to the way the lava was rising; he was terrified for her, that he wouldn't be able to hold onto her.

He only had a moment to grab her and hold her to his chest before he took off down the hall. He needed to get them to a higher floor, he didn't see anyone grab his godson but he knew that the boy hadn't fallen. Sirius didn't stop, or slow his pace, taking the next available staircase two at a time trying to put as much distance he could between them and the lava. As they climbed up onto the 7th floor, he continued to hold the child tightly. He must have been doing something right as the girl had yet to let go of him. Making his way to the Room of Requirement, he paced back and forth for a moment, wishing for an hospital. He wasn't very good at healing, but he knew the child who ever she was needed his help. As he walked in he, and shut the door behind them, he set her on the bed.

"Hey there, little one you're okay," he told her softly, trying to reassure her that everything was okay. His heart was pounding from his run, and he was out of breath. He nearly smirked to himself when a cup of water appeared next to him on the dresser by the bed. Which he gratefully drank.

"Am, am I dead?" Amanda asked, her throat thick with tears.

"No I saved you," Sirius explained to her quietly.

"Why did you do that?" She asked, as she sat up. She hadn't heard his voice before so she knew already that this wasn't one of her Professors; and he looked to old to be a student. She wasn't sure who he was but she didn't feel threatened at all, especially as he just saved her life.

"Because you're my godson's friend. And if the way he was holding onto you was any inclination, I know that hes beating himself up right now because he thinks your dead," Sirius told her gently.

Amanda didn't pretend she got that, choosing to look at the man with a blank expression. "But I am dead, I fell and I was burned alive. See my feet?" She said in a calm voice that had Sirius looking at her in alarm.

He had smelled burning flesh when he carried her, but up until that moment he hadn't know what part of her was burnt. Looking at her feet had him wincing as her shoes, were completely melted off, and sticking to her feet which were black. He had to wonder how she wasn't screaming in pain right now. He could also see the tears silently streaming down her face, but she was oh so calm; it didn't make sense.

"No honey, I know they're burnt, and I'll heal them in a moment," he promised as he stood up and grabbed the burn salve. He went through the bookshelf of potions, grabbing everything he remembered Poppy using on him when he had an incident with a dragon in his 4th year.

"I want my brother," she whimpered out as she hugged herself tightly. She didn't yet feel her pain, because of the shock she was currently in. It was probably a good thing too, as she would probably pass out if she did.

"Doesn't it hurt?" He asked suddenly as he had held out a pain potion and she shook it away; as if she didn't need.

"I don't want it," she protested; shaking her head once more. She felt fine!

"You're in shock," Sirius stated as he stared at her for a second, before uncorking the vial along with a few others and making her drink it. She gave him a bit of a struggle, but she was an injured 11 year old girl and was no match for him. He knew they were safe for the moment, and he took that time to heal her, making sure to keep her as calm as can be. It helped however that she had a calming potion coursing through her blood stream.

"Why did you save me? Thank you for doing it, but why did you really do it?" Amanda asked quietly, as she wiped her runny nose on her sleeve. She knew if her mother had been there she would have been scolded for using pureblood decorum.

"Because my godson would never forgive himself if you had died. Not to mention you are someone's baby, I would hope that if I had a daughter someone would save her if she was in a similar situation," Sirius replied quietly, and he had meant every word. He grimaced as he watched her, before reaching over and grabbing the handkerchief that just appeared.

"Harry's your godson, so I guess that makes you Sirius Black then, huh?" Amanda asked neutrally; as she pondered over the information that she was given. She knew this is why she was placed in Gryffindor instead of Slytherin like she had been hoping, her sense of curiosity always overrode her sense of self preservation.

She didn't particularly care who the man was in front of her, she was from a dark family, and though she would deny all who asked her this; but her father was definitely a death eater. And he tended to talk about sensitive things when he thought his children were asleep. She had known as long as she could remember that the man in front of her was no death eater. He didn't even have the signature tattoo! She knew that he had been framed, hell most of the Slytherins did too. As he was from a dark family as well, she had no reason to fear him; as he knew how sacred pureblood children were. No harm would come to her, at least not from him.

"Yes, but I'm not going to hurt you." Sirius told her in a calm voice.; before reaching over and wiping her nose. "Blow," he requested.

"I know you're not, you didn't do it. You don't have to explain to me," Amanda said with a shy smile, before she blew her nose.

"How could you know that?" Sirius asked her after a moment of silence had passed by and he placed the sodden handkerchief in the rubbish bin. He had been shocked into silence at her words.

"I'm Amanda Flint, a pureblood from a dark family. I know you weren't a death eater," she replied firmer as if that explained it all; because for purebloods it did. And one look at his expression she knew he understood it all to clearly.

"How is Harry friends with you?" Sirius couldn't help but ask; he was aware that his tone was rude and not all gentle as it had been. He stared at her a bit differently as well; ashamed to say that he was indeed judging her, and he knew she knew it too.

"I'm in Gryffindor," she replied softly. "And as of 2 hours ago we weren't friends. We were just the only ones left in the tower. Don't worry, I won't poison him," Amanda muttered before turning away from the man. Her shy friendly smile was gone and in it's place was a blank expression. Though she wasn't a Slytherin she was from a Slytherin family, and she knew how to hide her emotions when she needed too. But she was still only 11 and he had hurt her feeling, so the tears pooled into her eyes unwilling, but she didn't look at him again.

She felt a sense of hurt settling in her stomach, but this was nothing new to the 11 year old. There was a reason she didn't have a lot of friends in Gryffindor, and it wasn't the first time where she cursed the sorting hat. She knew it was only love that kept her parents from disowning her; and the back of her eyes stung from the tears. She stared at her red but no longer severely burnt feet. They were far from being healed, but she wasn't at a risk of loosing her feet or toes anymore. She didn't offer anything else, and only watched in silence as he wrapped her feet in bandages.

"Oh," Sirius stated stupidly feeling low all of a sudden. It didn't matter who Harry was friends with, he should be able to contest to that. He was from a dark family and a Potter of all things had befriended him too. So why couldn't Harry and Amanda have that friendship? Who the hell was he to judge that; to judge them? Not to mention, this was an 11 year old girl, where did he get off hurting kids. What if someone did that to Harry?

"I thank you for saving me," she repeated formally. "If you ever need anything, just call on the life debt that you now have and I will try my best to grant you it," Amanda replied curtly as she waited until he was finished before she started to slide off the bed so she could get off of it. She shook her head; even as the tears fell. But she wouldn't wipe them away, she wouldn't give him that satisfaction to know that he upset her so. Amanda swallowed thickly, just wanting to run away from this place and leave him behind.

"It was nothing kid, listen. I'm sorry, I know I have no business judging you, and Harry is lucky to have a friend like you," Sirius told her softly, before he registered her words. "And you don't owe me a life debt," he protested.

"I do, you saved my life," Amanda told him, his apology and his words warming her hurt heart. She still couldn't look at him Slytherins never showed weakness. And she was a snake in lion's clothing.

"I did it because it was the right thing to do, you are someone's kid," Sirius stressed as he stood up and looked around the sterile room. He sighed as he finally caught a glimpse of her face and sighed, knowing that this new wave of tears was his own doing and not her injuries. He took a clean wash cloth and gently cleaned her face.

"I know," Amanda replied softly, realizing that he wasn't going to take it. "What are we going to do?" She asked, she didn't even know where they were. She hadn't exactly been fully aware when he brought her up him. She didn't protest as he cleaned her face, her emotions confused on the inside.

"The come and go room." Sirius replied absently as he pulled out the wand and started to finish his disguising charm on his face.

"We can't stay here can we?" Amanda asked quietly.

"No it isn't safe, the lava is rising and when it does get to the 7th floor, we will be sitting ducks. We need to get as high up as we can, and then I'll accio a broom and get us the hell out of here," Sirius told her.

"But what about Harry?" Amanda said suddenly, remembering her friend.

"Find him on the way, hopefully after what happened. He will think to go up," Sirius told him as he reached for her on the bed and picked her up. She didn't weigh much so he didn't feel that he needed to cast a featherlight charm so he didn't. He made sure she drank some water before they left the room and reappeared in the corridors of Hogwarts.

"I'm scared," she whispered out, when the empty silence of the hallway seemed much too loud to her.

"I know you are, but I've got you and I'm not going to leave you." Sirius promised her as he headed down the hallway.


	6. Chapter 6: Sacrifices are a part of Suri

**A/N- I think I have to change the rating, I'm sorry but we all know that Natural Disasters have deaths, and this is a Volcano. Nonetheless I hope I dont lose any readers and if I do, well I 'll get over it. And I'm also sorry for the cliff hanger at the bottom. It was either that or I dont update today.**

**Chapter 6: Sacrifices are a part of Survival**

Severus turned when he heard the opening of Albus's office door, and was alarmed and relieved when he saw who it was. What he couldn't understand is what Draco was doing with a Weasely. Those two got along like water and oil, even worse then how Harry and Draco got along. He knew it was because the blood feud between their families, that went back way even before the boys were born. He shook his head knowing he was getting off track.

"Mr. Malfoy, to what do we owe this pleasure? Why weren't you evacuated with the rest of your classmates?" Severus said in a dark silky voice, that his students knew not to lie too.

Draco swallowed thickly, his eyes straying to his Gryffindor companion who was steadily looking at something behind his Head of House's shoulder. He couldn't for the life of him see what it was but that wasn't important. He didn't know where the lava was and he knew his friends lives were at risk.

"Because my friends are in danger," Draco replied urgently.

"Why do you say they are in danger? Where are they?" Severus asked worriedly.

"They're probably in their Common Room Severus, that's where Harry was remember?" Remus pointed out.

"They couldn't be, I sealed it, after I checked and made sure that no one was left," Severus replied but his eyes never left his snake. He could see the small shudder that the boy tried to suppress.

"But they are, they hid from you," Draco replied quickly.

"The little imbeciles, do they not know that the lava is invading the castle?" Severus asked in a shocked and dangerous tone that had Harry whimpering on his shoulder. "Shh child, not you," he murmured.

"They do now, they saw it through the dorm windows. They're trapped, they could die!" Draco blurted out, and to his horror found himself blinking back tears.

"Sweet Merlin," Remus murmured as he looked back at his fellow Professors. "Do we know for sure that the first floor is covered?" He asked.

"It is, Harry and Amanda were heading to it, and the 2nd floor stairs were starting to crumble," Severus replied, before sighing as he heard the twin gasps from the boys in the room.

"I knew that was Harry," Ron murmured to himself. "Mate are you okay?" He asked, a bit of weight falling off his chest; as he realized his best friend was unhurt and alive.

"I'm okay Ron," Harry whispered out.

"If that's true, then why are you attached to Snape?" Ron asked curiously; after all it was a legitimate question.

"I don't know," Harry replied, making no move to get away from the man. He was saved thankfully by his Head of house.

"Mr. Potter had just witness a traumatic event and Professor Snape saved him," she replied firmly. She was feeling extremely sorry about what had just happened moments before, knowing that she was the cause of his overly emotional state right now.

Albus took this time to stand up, and looked at everyone gathered in his office. He knew that the most rational thing to do was to floo Harry, Ronald and Draco to safety. But Harry's safety was also priority and he knew that regardless of what was going on inside the school Death eaters were still out there. And as soon as Draco Malfoy flooed over, his family(most importantly Lucius Malfoy) would be informed and he didn't need him that close to an unprotected Harry. He sighed, having not choice but to keep them within the castle walls to his utter regret.

"Lets head out, Draco I need you to tell me, which of your peers were hiding out," Albus asked sternly.

Draco swallowed, as you never wanted the old man mad at you. He still could wield a lot of power even if his father did say that he was barmy. "Daphne Greengrass, Pansy Parkinson, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, Theodore Nott, and Blaize Zabini," he said sighing.

"Well there are your 7 Slytherins Severus," Albus replied quietly, gesturing to Draco as the last one.

"Yes Albus, I can count. Just wait until I get my hands on them. They won't be able to sit still for a week," Severus replied quietly, giving a Draco a look the boy knew all to well. He knew that the blond boy played a part in this and he too would be receiving punishment. He kept his Slytherins in line by his fair but firm hand. Their parents were all purebloods, and they had no problem with it as they all practiced it at home. He was rewarded when the boy's hands unconsciously disappeared to hold his backside protectively.

"What are you doing?" Ron asked in horror as he stared at the Slytherin. He himself was no stranger to spankings, so he knew what they boy was doing, but why he was doing it was beyond him.

"Nothing," Draco squeaked in embarrassment before looking towards the ground. He couldn't believe his traitorous hands had betrayed him like that; and in public no less.

"You will stay with Professor Lupin if you know what's good for you," Severus told the blond boy who nodded meekly as Minerva found herself grabbing Ronald's hand to the boy's embarrassment.

"Albus how are we going to get to them?" Minerva asked quietly, she didn't feel very good about taking the children with them. It was much to dangerous; she wasn't alone in her thoughts as she saw Severus take a seat.

"Harry, I can't take you with me," Severus told him softly before sighing. He couldn't focus on saving his Slytherins and worry about Harry somehow getting hurt. The boy was a magnet for trouble.

"Why not? You said you wouldn't take me away!" Harry said in a terrified tone, that had both of his peers looking at him in concern, and a bit of fear. As they didn't know what happened to Harry, to make him act like that.

"I'm not taking you away. I just need you and Draco and Ronald to stay in Albus's office, just until we come back with my Slytherins," Severus told him gently.

"Oh," Harry replied quietly, a heavy feeling appearing in the pit of his stomach. Professor Snape needed to get _his _Slytherins and Harry wasn't his. Who was he kidding, he would _never _mean anything to this man. He was just the kid who witness a classmate fall to her supposedly death and then needed some comfort. Snape was only doing his Professional duty, and nothing else. He swallowed the lump that suddenly appeared, but this was nothing new to him. He wasn't anybody's, and the sooner he remembered that; the better off he would be.

Severus sighed, as he looked at Harry. The child literally radiated hurt, which he couldn't take the time the time out to address right now. As every second they wasted, the other children could perish. As it was they only had the book to tell them how many were alive and he was too afraid to look through it. He couldn't afford to squash the poor boy's fears, so he just hugged him tight for a moment before he stood up and set Harry in the chair. He frowned as the comfy chair seemed to swallow Harry u[, he just looked small and vulnerable. Severus frowned, he hadn't fully realized how small Harry really was. He had to fight the twitching of his arms that threatened to pick the child back up. He was currently oblivious to the looks the others were giving him; too focused on Harry.

"I will come back for you," Severus promised as he nodded to Albus who was giving the other two boys a stern talking too; knowing how they could be. He knew the last thing they needed was a petty fight breaking out with no adults. Not to mention he didn't want Harry getting hurt, the boy was already suffering from flashbacks; he didn't need anything worse

Harry shrugged sadly, before pulling his knees to his chest. He could care less about anything else, he missed the comforting smell of the potions on the man's robes. Who would have know he would have liked that smell, but when his security blanket was Snape, he guessed it wasn't so surprising.

Remus frowned at the scene, he could smell the hurt and the fear on Harry but he silently disappeared out the office; keeping his findings to himself, where he was soon,followed by Minerva. Severus followed after her with Albus locking and warding his office so they boys couldn't leave and basically rendered their wands useless. He wasn't worried about the lava making its way to his office, he was at the very top of the castle, they would be fine, if they didn't kill each other that was.

It was a about 5 minutes later, when the 3 boys in the office were sure that their Professor's were gone when they finally started to speak. Well 2 of them did, one was still curled up miserably in the chair, to the surprise of his peers.

"Harry, what's really wrong? It can't be because Snape left you right?" Ron asked quietly as he moved towards his friend.

"Not all of it, but I don't want to talk about it okay?" Harry said pleadingly. His heart stung at Ron's words, even if he knew he mate hadn't meant to hurt him. Snape had left him after all.

"What crawled up your butt Potter?" Draco drawled as he stood up and walked around the office. He strayed far away from the phoenix that has resumed his perch, and was now looking at him.

Ron's face got red, but Harry didn't rise to the bait as he buried his face in his knees.

"Harry seriously, what happened? Did you get burned?" Ron asked in concern. He placed a hand on his friend's shoulder and was rewarded with a flinch; to his horror.

"No Ron, I'm fine. Please don't touch me," Harry whimpered out.

"What the hell is wrong with you Potter?" Draco asked, getting worried as the boy hadn't risen to the bait, and he too had seen the flinch. He was just curled into himself, this wasn't the Gryffindor boy he was used to seeing day after day.

"I'm just gonna take a nap," Harry told them quietly, before turning his face into the chair. He shivered slightly, his body was chilled but he wasn't sure where it was coming from. Was it cold from natural causes or his fear. He didn't have time to think on it, as a blanket was soon draped over him, and he gave them a small nod unsure who it was until the boy spoke.

"If you get sick suddenly, Snape will blame us," Draco mumbled out, before shrugging. He too had seen how attached Harry not to mention Snape himself had been. It wasn't for the first time that he had wondered what the hell had happened to Harry and Snape.

Ron stared silently at his friend for a moment before turning to look at Draco in disbelief with small smile of thanks. He shook his head, not wanting to over think anything especially right now. He got up to look at the window, he could see the Volcano from where he was, even though he was pretty sure trees had once blocked it. He could see nothing but ash falling, lava and smoke in the air.

"I hope your friends are okay," Ron told Draco quietly.

"Me too," Draco replied softly as he came to stand next to the red-haired boy. "I hope your brothers are okay as well," he said after a moment.

"So do I," Ron replied gently.

~*~*~*~The Muggle World~*~*~*

Liam Finnegan was sitting on the couch watching TV., as he waited for his wife to come back from the store. He was absently flicking through the channels, as his program had just gone off. As he continued to click, he found that the breaking news seemed to appear on every other channel and every single new channel was broadcasting it. He wasn't sure just what it was, until the smoke finally cleared on the cameras and he gasped. He recognized the small village of Hogsmead, only to see that people were evacuating and that red liquid what looked to be lava making its way towards the town and remaining townspeople.

He knew as a muggle that the cameras wouldn't pick up Hogwarts but because he had been there, because of his wife and son, he knew what it was. He wasn't stupid to think that the castle would be spared. Sure magic was good for a few things, just look around his home, but this was a natural disaster. He swallowed thickly hoping his son and his friends were alright. He reached for the floo powder on the mantel only to remember that he couldn't use it. He was magic-less! He nearly cried with relief when his young daughter came running in from the backyard. His wife not to mention his own eyes knew that she was witch. She was 6, but was displaying accidental magic, so he knew she would be able to help.

"Daddy, what's wrong?" She asked worriedly.

"Lizzie, I need you to throw the floo powder into the fireplace, like mam taught you okay?" He asked her holding out the canister.

"Who am I calling Daddy?" Lizzie asked, she was worried, she didn't know what was wrong. But she knew for her dad to be telling her to use the floo that was off limits to her meant it was serious.

"The ministry of Magic, Amelia Bones, I believe is her name," Liam replied calmly. He didn't need her to panic. He had to keep calm, even though he wanted to panic. Though he had no idea if Hogwarts was even hit, he wasn't a full and he knew that natural disasters didn't spare anyone.

"Okay daddy," she replied as she tossed the powder in and called out in a clear voice like she was taught.

~*~*~*Corridors~*~*~*

The minute he had cleared the stairs, Severus took off at a dead run. He could hear the wolf keeping pace with him and figured that Albus and Minerva were behind them. All he could think about was his third years and how he hoped that they were all alive and fine. He was making his way down the steps quickly, when he came to a set of stairs going from the second to the first that 'seemed to be intact. He slowed down as he went down them, the air getting hotter the lower they went. Finally he had to cast a bubble head charm on himself so he could breathe clearer. Severus was in the middle of the staircase when he saw the rushing lava, so he knew with a sinking heart that the dungeon area was trapped.

"Why did you stop Severus?" Minerva asked as she came up behind them.

"The path is blocked, the lava is rushing across, take a look yourself," he told her quietly, trying to think of another plan.

"What are we going to do now? How are we going to get them out?" Remus asked softly.

"We will think of something," Albus replied his mind already trying to figure this out.

"We'd better do it fast, I don't know how long the students are going to have," Severus murmured, as he saw the red river rushing lava.

~*~*~*~Slytherin Tower~*~*~*~

Theodore wasn't sure what time it was, nor how much time had gone by for that matter. He looked around the tower blearily, it was quiet. The only constant sound was his friends snores mixed together; they had all decided to take a nap a few hours earlier when they realized they had nothing else to do. He hoped that Draco would be able to get them out of here, as he was tired of being locked in. He yawned before he laid back down on the couch.

He closed his eyes, thinking for a moment how weird it was that the Dungeons felt extremely warm today. They didn't even have the fire going in the common room, it was unneeded and a bit weird but they didn't put much thought into it. He closed his eyes and started to doze back off to sleep; when he heard a small hiss. He looked around in confusion as none of his friends had snakes, and no one was awake.

"What the heck?" He murmured out as he stood up and looked around.

As he walked around the chair couch he had been lying on, he could see smoke coming in from under the entrance to the common room. His eyes widened before he saw the entrance doors quiver. What was going on? He didn't have room to think about that when he saw the lava seeping in from under the door. He couldn't help himself, when he screamed, effectively waking up a few of his friends.

"Theo, what is it?" Daphne asked, immediately rushing over to his side.

"There better be a good reason why you just gave us a heart attack," Pansy told him, her nose turning up as she looked at him in annoyance.

"We gotta get out of here," Theodore whispered out.

"Why are you whispering? And yeah I know we have to get out of here. But news flash Theo, we're stuck in here. You know Snape sealed the entry doors shut," Blaize replied with a sigh.

"Yes I know. But we HAVE to get out here!" Theodore replied, his voice reaching near hysteria. How did know one turn around and see what he saw? The lava was quickly making its way towards a sleeping Gregory on the floor. He hadn't realized that they were too busy looking at him in concern that they hadn't noticed.

"Relax Theo, I understand how this is becoming too much, but Draco promise," Pansy told him lightly.

"There's lava! Greg wake up, move!" Theo yelled out, his eyes wide as the lava was literally an inch away from his friend's foot.

He swallowed thickly, the others turning around to see what he was screaming out before their shrieks of terror was also heard. Greg and Vincent were hard sleepers on a good day but at the moment Vincent had woken up and was already behind them. Greg was still in harm's way..0

"Greg, get up," Blaize pleaded, stepping back unconsciously.

"Guys stop yelling I'm up," Gregory mumbled, unaware of the danger he had fallen in.

"Run!" Daphne screamed before her eyes widened and she had turned her face into her shoulder. She just couldn't watch this, she just couldn't!

Gregory wasn't sure what was going on, only when he went to stand up, his hand touched something warm and it was suddenly burning. It was the most pain he thought he had ever felt and he scream, as the skin from his hand literally started to peel off. He stood up, but he knew as the lava touch his feet, he had been a bit too slow. He could hear his friend's screams of horror mixing with him, but he couldn't do anything about it.

"Help me!" He screamed out fearfully.

"GREG!" Vincent yelled out, as he got on the couch to reach a hand out to his best friend.

"Oh Merlin, what do we do?" Pansy said panicked over and over again.

"Theo, Blaize? Help him!" Daphne said urgently. She was sure the images she was seeing, she would never ever forget in her entire life.

"What can we do?" Theo asked softly to himself, before shaking his head and hurrying over to the couch, his arm already outstretched. "Blaize get the girls upstairs!"

Theodore watched as his friends led both of the horrified girls up to the boy's dorm and shut the door. He didn't know what to do and quickly grabbed his friend's free hand and tried to pull him up. He didn't bother shouting for help as he no one could get them now, they had probably condemened themselves.

"It's not working!" Vincent grunted out as he tried to pull his friend up. He didn't care that the hot lava was popping onto his and Theodore's skin, they couldn't feel it at the moment.

"Dont let me die! Please!" Greg cried, screaming out in agony as the lava climbed up his skin. He shut his eyes tight, tears falling like a stream down his eyes.

Theodore turned his head to see what they could use to help pull him up. He had barely began to look when Vincent screamed, and awful scream he never wanted to hear again. He turned back quickly to find that Greg's lower body was covered in the lava and the boy wasn't making any more noises, even as his mouth was opened in a silent scream.

"Greg! Greg answer me," Vincent pleaded as his best friend stared unblinking at him, as he shook the boy urgently. He gasped before he was suddenly pulled back by Theo as Greg's body was soon covered by the hot liquid. Tears pooled into his eyes, unwilling to believe what they had just witnessed. His body trembled and he shook his head in denial.

"Come on Vincent, lets get upstairs," Theo replied thickly; his own mind trying to process one of his friends being gone.

"No we can't leave Greg," he said in denial.

"Greg is...Greg is dead," Theodore choked out. "Come on before it gets too close and gets us," he said tearfully. He didn't notice anything, as he grabbed his friend's shirt and tugged him with him as they headed to the highest dorm room. Theo had yet to notice anything, as they were both suffering from shock at what they just witnessed. He wasn't fully there as they took a seat on one of the 7th year beds, as the Vincent sat there rocking on the bed silently.

"Where's Greg?" Pansy asked finally when it seemed like no one was going to talk.

"Down there," Theo replied softly.

"You left him?" Daphne asked in horror.

"No the lava took him; he was covered in it," Vincent replied, his face crumpling before he managed to fix it, even as he sat their blinking back tears.

"You're trying to tell us that Greg is dead?" Pansy asked, her voice rising in her fear.

"Yeah that's exactly it," Theodore replied, as he took his arm to wipe his face only to hiss in pain.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Blaize asked as he hurried over to his best friend.

"I got burned," Theo replied softly as he looked at his blistering skin, or what was left of it as the skin had peeled off. He swallowed thickly, he was no healer but this looked really bad.

"We gotta get out of here," Daphne replied stating the obvious. One of her friends were dead, another was in shock, and one more was hurt and from what she knew of injuries it was severe. Not to mention they were alone with the rising lava.

"I know," Blaize said tightly as he stared out the window. He had no idea what to do. How were they going to get out of this?

~*~*~*~Charms Classroom~*~*~*

Percy Weasley shook his head from where had been following his Charm's Professor when the man suddenly took off. They had been looking for wayward students, and evacuating them. As Head boy it was his responsibility to make sure that all the students were safe as well as himself. He knew that the Penelope the Head girl was searching with Professor Sprout. He sighed as he walked through the corridors. He had never in all his life think that Hogwarts would be threatened by something like this.

He should his head once more, trying to figure out where Professor Flitwick was. Walking out of the classroom he could see that the corridor was filled with light smoke but he knew that thankfully that wasn't the worse of it. He would be in trouble if the lava suddenly appeared. He continues to make his way down the hall, feeling more alone then he had ever felt. He wasn't scared per-say, he was just glad that none of his siblings were here. He had made sure that they were in Professor McGonagall sights before he took off to help. As he turned the next corner he could see down the hall, bright red liquid was coming in his direction and he was all set to turn around and run the next way when he heard a small cry.

"Christoper, come here," he said firmly. He recognized the first year Hufflepuff muggleborn student from anywhere. The boy who had brown hair, tended to blend into the background was no curled into a ball on the windowsill.

"I can't," Chris whispered out. He really couldn't, he had been alone for the longest time and thought that no one would find him. He wasn't hurt but he couldn't make his body move, having frozen in his fright. He was right in front of the window so he could see the lava and all of his destruction.

"Yes you can, come here. We have to get out of here," Percy told him impatiently, one eye still on the lava creeping down the hall.

"I can't move, I don't know why!" He sniffled out distressed over the whole thing.

Percy sighed before he made his way towards the boy. "It's okay to be scared, I understand that," he said as he hurried over to the middle of the corridor where the boy was currently at. His heart thudded as he looked at the lava, it was more closer to Chris then where he himself had been standing. He shook the fear away before he reached out for the boy. "Come on, we gotta get out of here," he told him urgently.

"I'm scared," Chris replied, still refusing to move. He had been here for an hour and it was starting to feel safe. He didn't see the lava from where he was currently sitting with his face in his knees,

"I know you're scared, but I will protect you. So come on we have to leave now!" Percy told him before he just reached over to pick him up. He startled as the boy suddenly screamed and the older teen looked at him in alarm.

"I fell earlier, and everyone was running and some of them stepped on me. My foot and my arm hurts," he whispered out painfully.

"Well I'll take you to the infirmary but right now we need to get out of here," Percy stressed. He had been refraining from looking back to check the lava, because he knew it was getting closer and closer each passing minute, and if he chanced a look back he knew he would be overwhelmed in panic.

"Okay," Christ replied before reaching for the older teen.

Percy sighed in relief, as he carefully picked up the small boy. He knew that he had taken much more time then he planned but that didn't fully register how long until he looked and he could see the lava was on them. He quickly pulled himself in the alcove with Chris and swore earning a look of shock from the small boy.

"It's gonna be okay," he told him softly as the lava rushed passed them. He knew they were safe for now, but he didn't know how long they had as the heat from the lava was getting to be unbearable all in the span of a few seconds. He made sure that his cloak was covering the small first year up as he hugged him to his chest.

"How are we going to get out here?" Chris asked fearfully.

"I don't know, but I will get you out, make no mistake about that," Percy told him firmly as he looked around. He could pull out his wand but he couldn't levitate the small boy forever so that plan was out as the lava was quickly making its way down the hall. If he didn't so anything now, they would be stranded and would no doubt die. And he couldn't have that, he was a Gryffindor where there was a will there was a way. He stood up as best as he could on the windowsill and held the boy tight. "

"Chris I need you to do me a favor, hold on tight and shut your eyes. Whatever you do, don't let go until I tell you too," Percy told him in a serious tone. He pushed the feelings back, knowing this was the only way but at the same time, couldn't believe what he was really about to do.

"What are you going to do?" Chris asked, though he did what he was told.

"If we stay here we die, but if I can make it, we'll live," Percy told him honestly.

Chris poked his head up to look and shook his head frantically. "It's too far!"

"No it's not, remember what I said," Percy said cutting the small boy off. He didn't want to lose his nerve when he knew what he had to do.

"I will," Chris replied as he buried his face back into the older boy's torso.

Percy took a breath before he jumped off the windowsill, as far as he could. There was a burning fire in his eyes, he was going to get Christoper to safety, because all he could think about was his younger siblings and hoped that if they were this situation someone would do the same for them. He found himself unable to hold in the blood-curdling scream that ripped from his throat as he landed mid knee in the hot burning lava.


End file.
